On Friday, 4 March 2022, Russia’s communication agency Roskomnadzor announced a country-wide ban on Facebook amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. See why other US tech companies could also meet the same fate.
While Roskomnadzor’s statement lists 26 offenses starting from 2020, it is easy to see why this ban came at this time. Facebook had been among social media giants that took down Russian-run campaigns about a week ago. The communication agency had called the company’s action a ‘discrimination against Russian media and information resources.’
Following the ban announcement, Nick Clegg, president of global affairs at Meta, tweeted:
“Soon millions of ordinary Russians will find themselves cut off from reliable information, deprived of their everyday ways of connecting with family and friends and silenced from speaking out. We will continue to do everything we can to restore our services so they remain available to people to safely and securely express themselves and organize for action.”
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Twitter and YouTube are also among the social media giants that restricted Russian news channels and accounts. While the Friday ban only mentions Facebook, the country announced a new law that may make it harder for these platforms to operate locally. According to a summary by The Verge, the law makes spreading ‘fake news’ about the country’s armed forces a crime punishable by up to 15-year jail time.
Russia’s move is not so surprising for those in the know as Roskomnadzor had issued a warning to Facebook on 24 February 2022 to remove restrictions on its media companies. Who is next on Russia’s ban list? Your guess is as good as mine.
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