Signal
Submitted
Apr 28, 2026, 14:21 UTC
Russian state media RT spreads disinformation in Germany by sowing fear about COVID-19 vaccines, while Russian domestic media promotes vaccination campaigns, creating a contradictory propaganda strategy.
On August 26, 2021, German public broadcaster ARD reported that the Russian state-funded media outlet RT in Germany is disseminating disinformation by exaggerating side effects and fatalities related to COVID-19 vaccinations to sow public fear. RT grossly distorts data from Germany's Paul-Ehrlich-Institut (PEI) on suspected vaccine side effects and deaths without contextualizing that these are unconfirmed suspicions and not causally linked. In contrast, Russian domestic media, including RT's English site, actively promotes vaccination campaigns to increase uptake amid low public willingness, particularly in Moscow. This contradictory messaging highlights a strategic propaganda dilemma for Russia, undermining trust abroad while fostering vaccination at home. RT's anti-vaccine narratives are widely shared in German-speaking conspiracy and right-wing circles, including AfD affiliates, amplifying societal divisions.
Confidence: High
The article clearly outlines Russian state media RT deliberately spreading vaccine-related disinformation targeting the German public to sow fear and mistrust, a hostile information operation. The evidence includes specific RT broadcasts, PEI data misinterpretation, and amplification by German conspiracy groups, fulfilling criteria for propaganda and disinformation campaigns as hostile hybrid activity.
Source URL
https://tagesschau.de/faktenfinder/russland-staatssender-impfungen-101.html
Source reliability
B
Info credibility
6
Event time
Aug 26, 2021, 09:46 UTC
Event time confidence
unknown
Location
Germany
Primary actor
RT Germany
Country
Germany
Countries
Germany
Tags
Russian disinformation, RT, COVID-19 vaccine, vaccine hesitancy, information operations, Germany, propaganda, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Querdenker, AfD
Nodes
Node 2: 5th Column