Propaganda Machine: Inside the secret files revealing Russia’s plan for global influence

Submission statement: A new investigation by the journalists' consortium Forbidden Stories shedding new light on Russia's influence operations abroad.

Thanks to an important data leak, testimonies from former Russian assets, and the work of dozens of journalists throughout the world, those two articles expose how Evgeny Prigozhin's propaganda machine was directly taken over by Russian's foreign intelligence services to further the Kremlin's goals and challenge Western powers on three continents by destabilizing "hostile" regimes and strenghtening "friendly" ones, while abundantly using social media to target young people.

From ordering racist mugs in South Africa to discredit the Democratic Alliance, to flooding social media in Bolivia to strengthen the MAS' administration following the 2024 failed coup, to planning a military takeover in Senegal, dozens of Russian agents identified by Forbidden Stories and supported by willing assets on the ground have spent millions of dollars destabilizing countries in Africa, South America, and the Middle East as part of a very well-organized strategy piloted by the Russian presidency.