YouTube moderators have deleted a Russian campaign video that used homophobic humor to urge participation in an upcoming plebiscite on constitutional amendments.
In the video, two gay men adopt a young boy, to the horror of orphanage employees. The campaign ad depicts a hypothetical Russia where voters have rejected new constitutional amendments, including a proposed change to Article 72 of the Russian Constitution to define marriage explicitly as a heterosexual union.
“This video has been removed for violating YouTube’s policy on hate speech,” says a message where the video used to be accessible, followed by a hyperlink to the website’s policy on hate speech, which says the company removes content that promotes hatred against groups based on an array of attributes, including sexual orientation.
The video is the brainchild of the Federal News Agency and the media group “Patriot.” Independent journalists have linked it to Evgeny Prigozhin, a catering mogul who allegedly controls a powerful mercenary group and has famously close ties to Vladimir Putin.
YouTube deletes homophobic campaign video created by media organization linked to ‘Russian troll factory’Read More
