Did Ukraine's Bombing of Russian Data Centers Crater Online Traffic for Conservatives?

Earlier this week, claims spread on social media that Ukrainian strikes on Russian data centers had torpedoed online traffic to conservative voices such as Tucker Carlson (Right bias) or Germany's populist right-wing AfD party. Now, mainstream media outlets across the spectrum have pushed back on the claims as potential misinformation.

Ukrainian Strikes: On Oct. 12, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, "When our strikes reached Yandex's data centers, it suddenly became a little easier to breathe on many social media platforms. A lot of people noticed it. There was less hate, less division, and fewer provocations. Because there were fewer bots. And it's pretty clear where those bots were coming from." BBC News (Center) reached out to Zelenskyy's office and reported, "Zelensky's office told BBC Verify the president was 'talking about the atmosphere on social media' rather than a fall in bot activity. It added it had seen 'reports of fewer provocative and hateful comments' from many social media users."

Western Commentators: Conservative commentator Matt Tardio, who appears to be very critical of Russia and supportive of Israel, claimed on Oct. 13 that several Western commentators who have been critical of American foreign policy regarding both Russia and Israel saw dramatic declines. Specifically, he singled out Tucker Carlson, Max Blumenthal (Left), Douglas Macgregor, Scott Ritter, Ben Swann, and Rick Sanchez. Several prominent individuals, including Bill Browder, an American who previously managed huge investments in Russia, and writer and former British politician Louise Mench, spread the claims and criticized Carlson. Laura Loomer (Right) wrote on Oct. 12, "I for one am thankful to see less Russian bots online sharing Tucker Qatarlson's content and accusing everyone of being a pedophile and an Israeli spy."

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AfD: Czech Member of the European Parliament Tomáš Zdechovský claimed on Oct. 11 that AfD-related online activity saw a steep decline, though he noted it was unconfirmed. On Oct. 12, Polish cybersecurity outlet Niebezpiecznik claimed the graph was fake and generated with AI by a 24-year-old flight attendant. German state media outlet DW News (Center) published a fact check on Oct. 14 that concluded, "There is no clear evidence linking the attacks to a decline in bot activity." DW noted, "Particularly striking is that the graph extends to October 15… when the graph first appeared online on October 11. Data for a future date cannot exist."

Critical Commentators: Glenn Greenwald (Center) wrote on Oct. 13, "Nothing is easier than feeding people fake stories about Russia and then having them spread it mindlessly and uncritically. Even after we watched the US media and Democratic Party do exactly this for 3 years, only for it to be exposed as a hoax, it just continues unimpeded." Ilya Zolovsky, senior editor of the US NGO Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, wrote on Oct. 12, "Last night I was struck – really, almost radicalized – watching in real time as experts at the heights of their careers boosted emotionally satisfying narratives that were pretty much entirely wrong." In his own analysis, he concluded the claims were "based on data that has been misunderstood or appears to be entirely made up."

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Russian Media: Kremlin-funded RT (Lean Right) published an analysis in which it compared the "'Russian bots' lie" to the long-running media narrative that Russia has been engaged in "hybrid war" against EU states. It noted that some of the first prominent organizations and commentators to pour cold water on the claims have previously been very critical of the Russian establishment. RT concluded the story "fell apart the moment it was subjected to some basic scrutiny."

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