‘Don’t call it a war’ - propaganda filters the truth about Ukraine on Russian media

The Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine has played through a filter of propaganda here in Moscow, where the authorities appear concerned that ordinary Russians will be disgusted by scenes of missiles striking Kyiv and have sought to cut off the public from that uncomfortable truth.

To do so, the Russian government has taken extraordinary steps by throttling Facebook and threatening to shut independent media outlets such as TV Rain and the newspaper Novaya Gazeta, which published an edition in Russian and Ukrainian this week with the banner headline "Russia is bombing Ukraine".

The media have been told to use only official government sources for their reports and not to use certain words to describe the operation. According to the Latvian-based Russian news website Meduza, the words are: "Attack, invasion, war."

The restrictions are a window on how Russia wants to control the picture of its invasion of Ukraine to its own citizens and the unpopular steps, such as slowing and potentially cutting off access to Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, the Kremlin is willing to take.

Indeed Twitter confirmed last night that access to the platform had been restricted for some people in Russia, adding that it was "working to keep our service safe and accessible".

Dmitry Muratov, the editor of Novaya Gazeta, had told the Observer he would defy demands by Roskomnadzor, the media watchdog, to self-censor, saying he would rely only on his own newsroom and special correspondents. Editors at other independent media have said the same. "Propaganda is like radiation," said Muratov. "And it has touched many here."

For Russians watching TV, Saturday began like any other: chat shows, old movies, or a programme about renovating your dacha. By the afternoon, it had kicked into high gear, with pundits on debate shows either downplaying or outright denying that an invasion was taking place.