Despite Companies Cracking Down On Russian State News, Sarasota’s Rumble Offers A Platform

SARASOTA, FL — Rumble, a YouTube alternative that recently opened a headquarters in Longboat Key, will continue to broadcast RT on its video platform despite a worldwide crackdown on the Russian state-controlled news network.

Since Russia invaded Ukraine more than a week ago, major technology companies have removed or restricted the network, including the Roku Channel Store and DirecTV, which both removed the English-language RT America from its offerings, according to CNBC.

Meta Platforms, which operates Facebook, and Twitter have also restricted access to the network, Reuters reported. Facebook and Instagram have designated RT as “Russian state-controlled media.”

The European Union also banned RT and Sputnik, another Russian-owned media outlet, for spreading disinformation about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to Reuters.

On its Facebook page, RT said that it broadcasts in more than 100 countries and had more than 10 billion video views across all of its platforms in 2021.

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On Rumble, the network currently has 19,000 subscribers. Its most recent videos include “Putin announces ‘special operation’ in Donbass” and “'Cancel Russia’ Contest: West’s recipe to win in Ukraine.”

The online vide-sharing platform based in Toronto and popular among conservative influencers and right-wing viewers, the Washington Post reported.

In 2021, Rumble had an average of 36 million users monthly, up from 1.6 million users each month in 2020, according to Small Business Trends. In January, the platform saw 39 million users.

Former President Donald Trump turned to Rumble after being banned from multiple social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis also uses the site to shares state news with residents. Other prominent figures on the site include U.S. representatives Matt Gaetz and Devin Nunes, Sen. Rand Paul, former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Sean Hannity, and Ben Shapiro.

Rumble estimates that it will invest about $50 million in the Sarasota area and Florida over the next several years.

Sarasota County lured the company to the area with an incentive grant worth about $825,000, according to SRQ magazine.