Google shut down approximately 11,000 YouTube channels and associated accounts during the second quarter of 2025, marking a significant escalation in efforts to combat state-backed disinformation, the company said Monday.
Google’s Threat Analysis Group reported that over 7,700 terminated channels originated from China, broadcasting pro-Beijing messaging in multiple languages while advocating for Chinese leadership and analyzing American foreign policy.
An additional 2,000 channels with Russian ties were eliminated for disseminating multi-language propaganda that backed Moscow’s positions and attacked Ukraine, NATO allies and democratic institutions. Among the deleted accounts were channels connected to RT, Russia’s government-controlled news network.
The platform also eliminated influence campaigns originating from Iran, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Israel, Romania, and Ghana, with operations designed to undermine political opponents and exploit regional tensions such as the Middle East conflict.
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These latest actions push Google’s 2025 total of eliminated state-propaganda accounts above 30,000, building on the removal of over 23,000 accounts during the year’s first quarter.
“The findings from the most recent update are in line with our expectations of this regular and ongoing work,” a YouTube spokesperson said.
YouTube implemented a global ban on RT’s primary channels during March 2022, following Russia’s military assault on Ukraine. The current removals target surrogate accounts created to evade those restrictions.
Google’s enforcement spans its entire platform ecosystem, extending to Google Ads, AdSense and Blogger services whenever accounts distribute deceptive material.
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