The Kremlin sets its
eyes on YouTube
SVITLANA OVCHAROVA
In Russia YouTube is becoming the main platform
for political conflict and a battleground for young
voters. While the opposition is able to attract followers
with content, the authorities are experimenting with
ways to establish control over the video portal.The year 2017 has definitely become the year of YouTube. Already in 2016, the
video sharing social network became the second most visited website in the world
after Google.com. In June 2017 YouTube claimed that its monthly audience of reg-
istered users passed 1.5 billion people. In Russia, 87 per cent of internet users watch
videos on YouTube and the number of monthly active viewers is more than 62 mil-
lion unique users. Some research indicates the figure could be even more than 80
million. In addition to a growing audience, it is important to emphasise the main
advantage that YouTube has: younger generations of Russians now prefer You-
Tube over traditional media as their main source of news and information. Those
within the 25 – 34 year-old age group are the most active users of YouTube in the
country.
Despite its rapidly growing popularity, the Russian authorities at first did not
pay much attention to YouTube. This changed in March this year, however, when
a single film brought tens of thousands of people to the streets in 82 Russian cities.
The majority of the protesters were young.