“UNVERIFIED INFORMATION”
Again, in contrast to Facebook, Google, and Twitter, Telegram’s founder Pavel Durov runs his company in relative secrecy from Dubai.
On Feb 27, however, he admitted from his Russian-language account that “Telegram channels are increasingly becoming a source of unverified information related to Ukrainian events”.
He said that since his platform does not have the capacity to check all channels, it may restrict some in Russia and Ukraine “for the duration of the conflict”, but then reversed course hours later after many users complained that Telegram was an important source of information.
Oleksandra Matviichuk, a Kyiv-based lawyer and head of the Center for Civil Liberties, called Durov’s position, “very weak”, and urged concrete improvements.
“He has to start being more proactive and to find a real solution to this situation, not stay in standby without interfering. It’s a very irresponsible position from the owner of Telegram,” she said.
In the United States, Telegram’s lower public profile has helped it mostly avoid high-level scrutiny from Congress, but it has not gone unnoticed.
Some people used the platform to organise ahead of the storming of the US Capitol in January 2021, and last month, Senator Mark Warner sent a letter to Durov urging him to curb Russian information operations on Telegram.
Asked about its stance on disinformation, Telegram spokesperson Remi Vaughn told AFP: “As noted by our CEO, the sheer volume of information being shared on channels makes it extremely difficult to verify, so it’s important that users double-check what they read.”
But the Ukraine Crisis Media Center’s Tsekhanovska points out that communications are often down in zones most affected by the war, making this sort of cross-referencing a luxury many cannot afford.
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