A “secret” Russian influence campaign $10 million was reportedly paid to support a media company that featured like-minded right-wing commentators in the US – including popular pundits such as Benny Johnson, Dave Rubin and Tim Pool.
Justice Department indictment Two employees of Russian state-controlled media outlet RT were charged Wednesday with acting as unregistered foreign agents and laundering a $9.7 million payment to a Tennessee media company to promote pro-Kremlin propaganda.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, the employees, 31-year-old Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and 27-year-old Elena Afanasyeva, are still at large after nearly a year of unraveling the media entity that “posted nearly 2,000 videos that have been viewed more than 16 million times on YouTube alone.”
Neither the company nor its associated content creators are named in the indictment, though other details point to the Nashville-based company. Tenet Mediawhose founders allegedly “deceived” conservative influencers, which may have included Johnson, Rubin, and Poole.
The description of the company in the indictment matches Tenet's own description On your website “A network of heterodox commentators who focus on Western political and cultural issues.”
Tennessee State Department records also confirm Tenet Incorporate as a Business On January 19, 2022, the same date mentioned in the indictment.
Other business records and identifying features in the unsealed chargesheet point to Lauren Chen – A former RT commentator who now works as a host for BlazeTV and as a contributor to the conservative Turning Point USA — Primary founder of Tenet along with her husband, Liam Donovan,
The YouTube subscriber numbers of two unnamed commenters in the filing match those of Johnson (2.4 million) or Rubin (2.4 million) and Poole (1.3 million).
Johnson or Rubin received a $100,000 signing bonus and earned $400,000 per month, while Poole received $100,000 per video.
Together with a third anonymous Tenet commentator, conservative influencers made at least $8.7 million from Tenet between October 2023 and August 2024 via dozens of wire transfers from shell companies in Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Mauritius.
Those shell companies initially received their funding from RT, and subsequent payments to Tenet were disguised not as salary payments but for electronic goods such as “BUYING GOODS-INV.013-IPHONE 15 PRO MAX 512GB”.
Afanasyeva agreed to shoot, edit, and post hundreds of videos featuring conservative provocateurs using fictional personas, including commentaries on immigration, inflation, and other domestic and foreign policy issues.
“Although the views expressed in the videos are not uniform, the themes and content of the videos often align with the Russian government's interest in exacerbating U.S. domestic divisions in order to undermine U.S. opposition to core Russian government interests, such as the ongoing war in Ukraine,” federal prosecutors wrote in the indictment.
In one instance, Afanasyeva wanted Tenet commentators to “blame Ukraine and the United States” for the incident. ISIS terrorist attack on Moscow concert hall In March 2024.
Other Videos Among the things Russian agents tried to exaggerate was a statement by former Fox News host Tucker Carlson. Tour of Moscow supermarkets,
Afanasyeva presented a “skilled” financier named Eduard Grigoryan as the Western European professional behind the funding, although Johnson or Rubin apparently objected to a fake copy of his CV, which listed proud advocacy for “social justice” causes.
“Over a year ago, a media startup approached my company as an independent contractor to provide content,” Johnson said in a statement posted to X. “Our lawyers negotiated a standard, arms-length deal that was later rescinded. We are troubled by the allegations in today's indictment, which make clear that I and other influencers were victims in this alleged scheme. My lawyers will deal with anyone who says or suggests otherwise.”
“If these allegations are proven to be true, I, as well as other personalities and commentators, have been deceived and victimized,” Poole said in a statement posted on X. “I cannot speak for anyone else at the company as to what they do or what instructions they have been given.”
He also said, “The Culture War podcast was licensed by Tenet Media, it existed long before any licensing agreement with Tenet and it will continue to exist after the termination of any such agreement. The only change to the agreement was that the location of the live broadcast moved to Tenet's YouTube channel.”
He said, “At no time did anyone other than me have complete editorial control of the show, and the show's content is often non-political. Examples include discussions on spirituality, dating, and video games.”
He emphasized the difference between the podcast and its popular “Timecast” programming, saying, “The show is produced entirely by our local team, with no contributions from anyone from outside the company.”
Rubin Retweeted an X post He said these influential people were “deceived” about the source of the money.
Representatives for Tenet Media did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
