TV presenter Mikhail Shats was recognized as a “foreign agent” because of social networks and participation in the broadcast of “Dozhd”

TV presenter Mikhail Shats was recognized by the media as a “foreign agent” due to his management of social networks and participation in one broadcast of Dozhd. His lawyer Alexander Peredruk spoke about this on his Facebook, and Novaya Gazeta drew attention. Europe".

“As ‘foreign funding’, the actor and comedian was charged with receiving a fee from the Russian Rybakov Family Charitable Foundation for participating in the role of presenter in an event on April 30, 2022,” the defense lawyer said.

The charitable foundation receives foreign funding. “At the same time, the share of non-Russian funds in the general budget of the fund does not matter, nor does the fact that Schatz, in principle, could not know about the presence of such funds in the fund,” comments Peredruk.

Mikhail Shats was recognized as a “foreign agent” on September 9. However, as the lawyer writes, the Ministry of Justice discovered “signs of a foreign agent” in him on April 20, 2022. Then Roskomnadzor responded to the department’s request that it had no information about the corresponding funding and publications of the TV presenter.

• At the end of December 2020, the State Duma adopted changes to the legislation on “foreign agents”. According to new clarifications, the status of “foreign agent” can be obtained by an individual engaged in political activities and receiving money for this from abroad. Another bill prohibits the dissemination in the media of information from “foreign agents” without a special mark. Tightening of legislation continued in February 2021 and June 2022.
• OVD-Info launched the Inoteka project. We investigate practices of pressure on civil initiatives and protect victims from laws on “foreign agents.”