YouTube’s mass purge of Chinese and Russian propaganda: 30,000 channels terminated this year
In the first half of the year, Google wiped out over 30,000 YouTube channels linked to propaganda from Russia and China, marking a 45% increase compared to the same period last year.
Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) said it terminated almost 10,000 YouTube channels in the second quarter linked to adversary influence operations from the two countries.
Google also removed many more YouTube channels spreading misinformation from other countries. The tech giant blocked Ads and AdSense accounts, Blogger blogs, and barred website addresses from ever appearing on Google News or Discover services.
Adversary influence operations linked to Russia are critical of Ukraine, the EU, NATO, and the West in general, while praising Russian policies. Some channels were spreading misinformation about culture and society in Eastern Europe.
In total, Google TAG blocked 6,422 Russian YouTube channels this year, which is a 56% increase from a year ago, but just a quarter compared to the blocked channels in the H2 of 2024 (26,348).
Last year’s increase in malign activity is likely linked to campaigns aimed at swaying the 2024 US presidential elections, including those from Tenet Media and the Russian state media network RT.
Most blocked channels are from “a Russian consulting firm,” which constantly shares content supporting the Russian worldview.
Since the beginning of this year, YouTube has also wiped 23,621 channels linked to Chinese influence operations. This number is 42% higher compared to the first half of 2024, but also 42% smaller compared to the number of blocked channels from H2, 2024.
Most channels terminated in China are linked to a “coordinated inauthentic network,” which uploads content in Chinese and English about China and US foreign affairs.
Google’s Threat Analysis Group (TAG) previously explained that it is tracking DragonBridge, also known as Spamoflage Dragon, a Chinese influence operator, which persistently generates vast amounts of fake content on YouTube and other platforms to undermine the US government, society, and democracy.
DragonBridge uses thousands of channels to spread narratives on a wide range of news topics, ranging from elections in various countries and the Israel-Hamas war to content critical of the US.
Google said it also removed hundreds of YouTube channels spreading Azerbaijani propaganda, which is critical of Armenia and of the political opponents.
YouTube removed dozens of channels linked to Turkey influence operations, including those supporting the Turkish Victory party, and a dozen Romanian channels supporting a specific Romanian political party.
Some of the Iranian campaigns, spreading content in Arabic that was supportive of the Iranian government and Palestine and critical of Israel, were also thwarted.
