SAN FRANCISCO, March 12, 2022 (BSS/AFP) - YouTube on Friday broadened its
blocking of Russian state-linked media channels to apply internationally
after initially barring them only in Europe following 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 tech firms.

  YouTube's guidelines "prohibit content denying, minimizing or trivializing
well-documented violent events, and we remove content about Russia's invasion
in Ukraine that violates this policy," the video sharing platform said.

  "In line with that, effective immediately, we are also blocking YouTube
channels associated with Russian state-funded media, globally," it added.

  Content barred by YouTube includes denials of the invasion or claims that
it is a peacekeeping operation, the company said.

  YouTube-parent Google had already stopped allowing ads on Google properties
and networks globally for advertisers based in Russia.

  Google global affairs president Kent Walker said previously that the
internet giant had "paused the vast majority of our commercial activities in
Russia" but its free services such as search and YouTube continued to operate
there.

  YouTube posts associated with the invasion of Ukraine that contain what
might be considered hate speech could be permitted if the content is
educational, artistic or scientific in nature, according to YouTube.

  Russia restricted access on Friday to Instagram and launched a criminal
case against its owner Meta, as Moscow fired back at the tech giant for
allowing posts calling for violence against Russian forces.