YouTube Bars RT, Other Russian State Media Outlets From Receiving Ad Revenue

YouTube has officially cut off all ad revenue for RT and several other Russian state-owned media channels following the invasion of Ukraine by the Russian military.

YouTube said in a statement it’s “pausing a number of channels’ ability to monetize on YouTube, including several Russian channels affiliated with recent sanctions.”

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This move comes after a similar move by Meta, which barred Russian-owned channels from running ads.

YouTube spokesperson Farshad Shadloo said the content from these selected Russian outlets will appear less in related and recommended videos and added RT and other channels will no longer be accessible in Ukraine due to a governmental request.

Early Saturday, the Ukrainian Digital Transformation Minister tweeted he reached out to YouTube to block the “propagandist Russian channels.”

YouTube has been previously called on to take greater action against channels with ties to the Russian government out of concerns due to their propagation of misinformation.

The online video platform has previously stated that it does not treat state-funded media channels differently when it comes to sharing ad revenue, as long as these channels comply with the platform’s rules.

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