Media police

2023: Russia will begin to prepare media centers

In Russia, for the first time, a training program was launched for media professionals who identify extremist and destructive materials on the Internet. This direction of undergraduate studies appeared in the RANEPA. The initiative is justified, since the volume of such content in social networks and instant messengers is constantly growing - only over the past six months there have been 16% more such materials. This was announced on November 9, 2023 by the press service of the State Duma deputy RFAnton Nemkin.

At the end of training, media officers can gain specialization in the investigation of offenses against citizens (cyberbullying), legal entities (piracy) or the state (extremism).

The tasks of "media security" include the fight against the propaganda of terrorism, the ideology of AUE (criminal culture), suicides among adolescents, insults to the feelings of believers. This is a matter of national security. That is why the program is being implemented with the support of the National Anti-Terrorist Committee, - explained Lidia Malygina, head of the department of media support for state interests and national security of the IPNB RANEPA.

The average Russian spends up to 4 hours a day online, and among young people this figure reaches 6 hours. The amount of time spent on the Internet is growing annually, as is the number of threats that lie in wait for users in the digital environment. According to statistics from Roskomnadzor, in 2022, the department revealed 270 thousand destructive materials, most of them have already been removed or blocked. The identification of such materials should be very prompt, however, unfortunately, so far not all social networks and instant messengers, where destructive ones often spread, have been carefully carried out, the deputy said.

This is a market request to which the Russian university promptly responded. And this is an extremely positive trend, - concluded the deputy.