Access Now and Coalition Claim YouTube Blocks Content for Russia

YouTube should stop helping the Russian government censor news and human rights organizations on the platform, Access Now and a coalition of Russian advocates wrote in a letter Tuesday. They claimed YouTube has blocked anti-war content from groups like Roskomsvoboda and journalists Ekaterina Kotrikadze and Tikhon Dzyadko. Access Now signed the letter with Roskomsvoboda, OVD-Info, Greenhouse of Social Technologies and Reporters Without Borders. YouTube unlocked at least three censored videos on the platform, but the content remains unavailable in Russia, they said. YouTube said in a statement Tuesday that it regularly reviews takedown requests from governments all over the world. If the company believes a government is trying to silence citizens, then YouTube pushes back, it said. “We defend these cases vigorously, and have previously even been fined for our non-compliance, including by the Russian government,” YouTube said. The platform “has remained available in Russia” throughout the war with Ukraine, and the company regularly removes channels and content from Russian-linked groups spreading false information about the conflict, YouTube said.