In the second quarter of 2025, YouTube removed 11,000 channels associated with state-owned companies in China and Russia
In the second quarter of 2025, the YouTube platform removed nearly 11,000 channels and accounts that were linked to Chinese and Russian state propaganda campaigns. About this informs CNBC.
The majority — more than 7,700 channels — were linked to China. They distributed materials in Chinese and English, showed support for the Chinese government, praised President Xi Jinping, and commented on US foreign policy. More than 2,000 channels were of Russian origin — their content supported the actions of the Russian Federation and at the same time contained criticism of Ukraine, NATO, and Western countries.
In May, Google also shut down a network affiliated with Russian state media RT. 20 YouTube channels, four advertising accounts and a blog on the Blogger platform were blocked. RT financed the creation of this content through Tenent Media, an American company registered in Tennessee. Among the authors were popular conservative bloggers who openly support Donald Trump.
Back in March 2022, YouTube began blocking RT content in response to Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In addition to China and Russia, Google also identified other influence campaigns during the second quarter of 2025, including from Azerbaijan, Iran, Turkey, Israel, Romania, and Ghana. Some of them were devoted to events related to the conflict between Israel and Palestine.
For comparison, in the first quarter, Google eliminated more than 23,000 accounts, while the company Meta during the same period reported the removal of 10 million fake profiles masquerading as popular content creators.
