DoJ alleges Russian interference through Tenet Media

On Wednesday, the Department of Justice (DoJ) issued an indictment against the Russian state news broadcaster RT, claiming that it paid nearly $10 million to several conservative pundits in the hopes of promoting a pro-Russian agenda. Since launching last fall, the company in question—since identified as Tennessee-based Tenet Media—has published almost 2,000 videos through social media outlets like YouTube and X (formerly Twitter). Yet, the content creators in question insist—and the DoJ affirms—that they were unaware of the company’s link to Russia. 

To help hide the origins of their financing, Tenet claimed that the company was founded by a fictitious individual named Eduard Grigoriann. Yet, despite lucrative contracts that paid the creators upwards of $400 thousand a month, the Russian agents in charge of Tenet eventually grew frustrated that the commentators were not sharing more of the company’s videos. Ultimately, it appears that encouraging them to do so was the extent of the influence they wielded over many of the pundits, with each stating that they maintained both editorial and content control over what they produced. 

Still, the indictment claims that “While the views expressed in the videos are not uniform, the subject matter and content of the videos are often consistent with the Government of Russia’s interest in amplifying U.S. domestic divisions in order to weaken U.S. opposition to core Government of Russia interests, such as its ongoing war in Ukraine.”

Moreover, FBI Director Chris Wray warns that China and Iran have also attempted to do the same. 

And while the notion of foreign interference in our elections is far from new, “amplifying U.S. domestic divisions” is, sadly, not an effort limited to those outside the country.

Our bargain with the media

The notion that a media company would be incentivized to purposely convey the news in a way that fosters division and distrust should not come as a surprise. Increasingly, we see the same effort from domestic outlets, regardless of their political persuasions. Even Amazon’s Alexa appears to be in on the game, giving drastically different answers for why people should vote for Vice President Kamala Harris than with former president Donald Trump. 

Still, the idea of a foreign government funding such efforts rather than the general greed of media moguls feels like a different order of threat. But why is that the case? After all, in both cases, individuals’ beliefs are manipulated for the benefit of those creating the agendas. 

The key distinction is that we understand greed and the dangers it poses in a way that is not necessarily true for threats from foreign powers. 

While domestic news companies may want us living in echo chambers—a concept discussed in greater depth on the latest Denison Forum podcast—by and large, they do so because that’s how they can make the most money from advertisements and partnerships. By contrast, Russia’s efforts to undermine support for the war in Ukraine, influence who will occupy the White House in January, and sway Americans on a host of other issues represent an entirely different type of threat. 

To put it another way, most of us understand that we need to approach the media we consume with a rather large grain of salt, but we begrudgingly accept that they’re trying to manipulate us—so long as we understand that that’s what’s going on. In many ways, it’s a necessary bargain for us to make in order to stay connected to the events of the day, and there are some basic steps we can take to protect ourselves from the worst of the effects.  

However, when it comes to how we relate to those we encounter in other walks of life,  many take the same approach of viewing people as a means to our end—and that’s a far greater issue facing our culture today. 

A dog’s last lesson on love

While Scripture is clear that a person only becomes the child of God when they are adopted into his family through faith in Jesus (Romans 8:14–17), God’s word is equally clear that he loves and cherishes every person that he has created (John 3:16, 2 Peter 3:9). As such, how we see and treat those that God brings across our path will have a direct influence on how closely we can walk with the Lord. 

And this basic truth is something God impressed upon me in an unexpected way a few days ago. 

Earlier this week, my family and I had to put down the dog we’ve had for more than fourteen years. We knew the time was coming for a while, but things took a turn in a way that reinforced the necessity of that decision. I’d been dreading that moment for a while now, but more because of the grief I knew it would bring to my wife and kids than for myself. 

I’m not really an animal person, and, while I loved the dog, my role was primarily to take care of him so that the rest of the family could enjoy him. As a result, the degree to which his death got to me caught me by surprise. And it wasn’t until reflecting and praying about it that I began to understand why.

You see, what God showed me was that my love for our dog stemmed from the fact that he was amazing at loving the people that I loved. He brought a level of joy and comfort into their lives that can only be described as a gift from the Lord. And I will be forever grateful to him for that. 

And when we do the same with the people around us—when we love them as God loves them—I believe our heavenly Father feels the same kind of gratitude toward us. 

His love is not conditional upon our love for others, but when we treat people well and see them as individuals made in his image rather than as a potential means to our end, it opens new levels to how deep our relationship with God can go. And, fortunately, that’s something each of us can do by simply paying attention to the opportunities he brings us and then making the choice to love people as he does.

Who can you love like that today? 

Friday news to know:

• Hunter Biden pleads guilty to federal tax charges
• Chiefs win season-opening matchup with the Ravens on last-second review
• Purported painting by Rembrandt found in Maine attic; sells for $1.4 million
• Trump promises to establish a government efficiency commission if elected; taps Elon Musk to lead it
• On this day in 1997: 2.5 billion people tune in to watch the funeral of Princess Diana

*Denison Forum does not necessarily endorse the views expressed in these stories.

Quote of the day:

“The world does not understand theology or dogma, but it understands love and sympathy.” —D. L. Moody