Russia Today removed from list of channels aired in Washington, DC
The service provider broadcasting RT (Russia Today) in Washington has ceased distribution of the channel on its broadcasting grid, said Margarita Simonyan, Editor-in-Chief of international news agencies Russia Today and RT.
According to Simonyan, this happened because RT was granted the status of Foreign Agent.
"As the former State Department spokesman [Mark Toner] used to say, ‘Welcome…[to] this exercise in transparency and democracy,’" Simonyan wrote on Facebook.
The US Congress has been discussing new legislation aimed at limiting the activities of foreign media in the country.
Legislators suggest that such media should report on their activities to authorities every six months, and that they should additionally include an announcement on air about their foreign funding every hour during broadcasts.
These measures are directed against RT and Sputnik. Russian media stands accused of "broadcasting Kremlin propaganda." In contrast, BBC and France 24, which are considered independent, would not fall under these laws.
The TV channel RT was thus obliged to register as a Foreign Agent, and Congress began proceedings on its potential impact through social networks on the American elections.
According to Simonyan, the television channel does not experience such pressure as in the US in any other country. Russia has already applied retaliatory measures adopting a reciprocal law on Foreign Agents that listed a wide number of American media organizations as Foreign Agents within Russia.