Tim Pool and Benny Johnson produced content for Tenet Media, a Tennessee-based startup that allegedly accepted Kremlin cash.
Two prominent right-wing social-media influencers are maintaining their innocence after they were linked to a Kremlin-backed propaganda operation revealed by the Department of Justice on Wednesday.
The indictment unsealed on Wednesday alleges that two employees of RT, a Kremlin-controlled media outlet, funneled nearly $10 million to a Tennessee-based digital-content company — identified as “U.S. Company 1” in the document — in order to sow division within the U.S. and “to weaken U.S. opposition” to Russian interests, like the Ukraine war.
The description of the company included in the indictment matches a recently launched outlet called Tenet Media. The media startup paid well: One unnamed influencer was paid $400,000 per month to produce videos, on top of a $100,000 signing bonus, according to the indictment.
Two of Tenet Media’s top commentators are Tim Pool and Benny Johnson, both of whom have millions of followers across YouTube and other platforms. Pool and Johnson issued statements Wednesday afternoon claiming they were victims of the alleged foreign-influence scheme and accepted the Kremlin-provided funds under false pretenses — but maintained full editorial control of the content they produced.
“Should these allegations prove true, I as well as the other personalities and commentators were deceived and are victims. I cannot speak for anyone else at the company as to what they do or to what they are instructed,” said Pool, explaining that his Culture War Podcast was licensed by Tenet Media.
“Never at any point did anyone other than I have full editorial control of the show and the contents of the show are often apolitical,” he added. “The show is produced in its entirety by our local team without input from anyone external to the company.”
Johnson, a Trump-supporting meme-maker who has worked for several digital media outlets since being fired from Buzzfeed over plagiarism allegations in 2015, similarly maintained his innocence.
“A year ago, a media startup pitched my company to provide content as an independent contractor. Our lawyers negotiated a standard, arms length deal, which was later terminated. We are disturbed by the allegations in today’s indictment, which make clear that myself and other influencers were victims in this alleged scheme,” Johnson said in a statement. “My lawyers will handle anyone who states or suggests otherwise.”
Tenet Media, which describes itself as a “network of heterodox commentators that focus on Western political and cultural issues” on its website, provides an independent platform for six commentators — Pool, Johnson, Dave Rubin, Lauren Southern, Tayler Hansen, and Matt Christiansen.
While none of the six right-wing commentators are named in the indictment, it does list two commentators that respectively have over 1.3 million and 2.4 million YouTube subscribers. It’s likely these numbers refer to Pool, Johnson, or Rubin, considering they respectively have 1.37 million, 2.39 million, and 2.45 million YouTube subscribers.
Rubin provided a similar statement in response to the Justice Department’s indictment, which was unsealed in New York’s Southern District.
“These allegations clearly show that I and other commentators were the victims of this scheme. I knew absolutely nothing about any of this fraudulent activity. Period,” Rubin posted on X. “The DoJ has never contacted me regarding this matter and I have no intention to comment further.”
Tenet Media was founded in 2022 by Lauren Chen and her husband, Liam Donovan. Chen is employed by the Blaze and has been amassing a growing following on YouTube herself. She did not respond to the allegations involving her company on social media.
The indictment charges Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva with money laundering and conspiracy to violate the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Both Russia-based employees worked for the Kremlin-associated outlet RT, which is accused of laundering money to Tenet Media in the U.S.
The indictment and subsequent fallout came on the same day that the Biden administration announced sanctions against ten Russian individuals and entities and the seizure of 32 internet domains connected to a Kremlin-sponsored campaign designed to propagandize Americans through fraudulent websites and social-media accounts that resemble credible news sources.
Together, the indictment and the Biden administration’s sweeping set of actions represent the U.S.’s most significant public response to alleged Russian interference in the 2024 election.
A day after the U.S. accused Russia of influencing American voters, Vladimir Putin said he supported Vice President Kamala Harris over former president Donald Trump to win the general election in November. He reportedly delivered the statement with a wry smile on his face.
Harris “laughs so contagiously that it shows that everything is fine with her,” Putin told the audience on Thursday at the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia. “Trump has imposed as many sanctions on Russia as any president has ever imposed before, and if Harris is doing well, perhaps she will refrain from such actions.”