A live news broadcast on Russian state television was interrupted for several seconds Monday as a woman appeared behind the anchor holding an anti-war sign.
The woman, who has been identified as Channel One editor Marina Ovsyannikova, disrupted a newscast on her own channel by holding a sign that read, “Stop the war. Don’t believe propaganda. They’re lying to you,” the latest demonstration of Russians protesting President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
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A clip of the broadcast shared on social media shows the network quickly cutting away from the anchor as Ovsyannikova appears behind her.
Apparently, a woman just ran onto the stage during a Russian state television news broadcast with a sign that said, “Stop the war! Don’t believe propaganda! They’re lying to you here!” pic.twitter.com/nn5XWsh4Wn
— Kevin Rothrock (@KevinRothrock) March 14, 2022
In a video message that appears to have been recorded before the viral protest, Ovsyannikova says her father is Ukrainian and encourages others to protest the war.
Marina Ovsyannikova, the woman who ran onto a live state TV news broadcast, even recorded a message beforehand. In it, she says her father is Ukrainian. She calls for anti-war protests, says she’s ashamed about working for Kremlin propaganda, and she denounces the war absolutely. pic.twitter.com/nOpUY9bH74
— Kevin Rothrock (@KevinRothrock) March 14, 2022
“I’ve spent many of the last few years working for Channel One, doing Kremlin propaganda, and I’m deeply ashamed of this — ashamed that I allowed lies to come from the TV screen,” Ovsyannikova says, according to a translation by news site Meduza. “It’s in our power alone to stop all this madness. Go protest. Don’t be afraid of anything. They can’t lock us all away.”
Ovsyannikova has been detained on administrative charges, according to Russian state news agency TASS. The Meduza report notes that according to authorities, Ovsyannikova will face misdemeanor charges for violating Russia’s new ban, signed into law by Putin last week, on “disinformation” about the Russian military amid its operations in Ukraine. The crime is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.
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In addition to the “fake news” law, Russia has also cracked down on public dissent against the invasion by arresting at least 3,000 protesters across 49 Russian cities and limiting social media access.
