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Disinformation websites in the Czech Republic publish an average of 120 pieces a day — more than the country’s leading media outlets. An investigation by Voxpot, carried out in collaboration with the Druit IT collective, analyzed 360,000 publications across 16 platforms over the past 25 years. They found that around 10% of the content consisted of translations or rewrites of articles from sanctioned Russian pro-government outlets, including Sputnik, RT, and RIA Novosti.
The distribution of materials from such sources is banned in the EU, and in the Czech Republic, violators can be punished with fines of up to 50 million korunas ($2.38 million) or prison terms of up to eight years. According to Voxpot’s sources in the Czech government, the authorities are aware of the systematic violations of the sanctions regime but have so far been hesitant to intervene.
The activity of disinformation websites has spiked in the run-up to the parliamentary elections, which are scheduled to take place on October 3-4. In recent months, the outlets have been publishing up to 4,000 articles a month, around 250 of which were translations of Russian propaganda materials.
The largest among them is Cz24news, which publishes up to 2,000 pieces a month and attracts around 3 million visits. Other key players named in the investigation include Zvědavec, Nová republika, Protiproud, and Ac24.
Nová republika was founded by a Member of the European Parliament from the “Freedom and Direct Democracy” (SPD) party — a right-wing populist force that is opposed to the EU and supportive of pro-Russian narratives. Protiproud is run by Petr Hájek, a former adviser to ex-Czech President Václav Klaus (head of state from 2003 to 2013, known for his Euroskeptic and pro-Russian views). The outlet’s funding is linked to Russian sources.
According to the report, Ac24 was one of the main translators of Russian materials before the sanctions came into force, while the oldest site, Zvědavec — launched back in 1999 — was the first to broadcast Kremlin narratives to the Czech audience.
The author of the investigation told The Insider that the total traffic of disinformation websites reaches 18 million visits per month. In all, analysts identified 12 sites engaged in this work on a systematic basis. Some of these outlets are linked to little-known individuals who are facing serious financial troubles, while others have connections to politicians from obscure far-right parties.