YouTube on Friday expanded its blocking of Russia’s state-linked media channels to apply internationally, after initially blocking only Europe after Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russia’s internationally condemned attack has provoked unprecedented sanctions from Western governments and businesses, including a growing list of US technology companies.
The video-sharing platform states that YouTube’s guidelines “prohibit the denial of content, belittle or trivialize well-documented violence, and we remove content that violates this policy on Russia’s aggression in Ukraine.”
“In line with this, with immediate effect, we are also blocking YouTube channels associated with the Russian state-funded media worldwide,” it added.
The denial of the attack or the claim that it is a peacekeeping operation in the content banned by YouTube, the company said.
YouTube-Guardian Google has already stopped allowing Russian-based advertisers to advertise on Google properties and networks worldwide.
Kent Walker, Google’s president of global affairs, had previously said that the Internet giant had “shut down most of our commercial activities in Russia” but that free services such as search and YouTube were continuing to operate there.
YouTube posts linked to the Ukraine invasion may be permitted to be considered hate speech if the content is educational, artistic or scientific in nature, according to YouTube.
Russia restricted access to Instagram on Friday and launched a criminal case against its owner, Meter, as Moscow fired back at technology giants for allowing posts calling for violence against Russian forces.