Russian Propaganda on American Podcasts

September 23, 2023

Echoes across the airwaves: Kremlin narratives on American podcasts

Nearly 1 in 4 Americans look to podcasts for their news, almost 9 out of 10 expect the information they hear to be mostly accurate, and 8 out of 10 view them as equally or more trustworthy than news they receive from other sources.

However, podcasting remains a largely under-examined space, where content can be highly opinionated and politicized. Anyone can start a podcast or claim expertise on a subject, content moderation is largely absent, and the spread of contested claims is common. These factors suggest that the podcasting ecosystem could be a fertile area for malicious foreign actors to exert influence. How worried should we be?

In a new report, Jessica Brandt, Bret Schafer, Valerie Wirtschafter, and Peter Benzoni look at whether and how Kremlin narratives spread across popular American podcasts, highlighting the complex ways that Russian propaganda interacts with U.S. domestic political discourse.

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In case you missed it

This week, we launched our new Global India podcast, hosted by Tanvi Madan! The first season of the show takes a deep dive on the India-China relationship, including its complicated security and economic dimensions. Listen to the first episode with former Indian diplomats Vijay Gokhale and Shivshankar Menon, or watch the conversation on YouTube.

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