After Russian social network aficionados, including millions of teenagers, transformed TikTok into a digital rebellion hotspot, the Russian Foreign Affairs ministry opened an account on the Chinese platform late last week.
The first videos displayed in the ministry’s account are meant to mock opposition figure Alexey Navalny, refuting his last year’s claims that the Russian anti-covid vaccine was of poor quality.
The ministry’s spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told TASS news agency that “recent events accelerated the process of creating the ministry’s TikTok account” — a move which had been planned “for a long time.”
“It’s not an homage to fashion, but merely information work,” she was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, as reported by Kommersant, the presidential administration and the Ministry of Digital Development are considering measures to ensure free access to domestic video content platforms and TV channels online. The authorities aim to boost these resources as an alternative to YouTube, on which their influence is extremely limited to counter opposition-minded video materials.
Russian foreign ministry makes first steps on TikTok to counter teenagers’ digital rebellionRead More
