Story perspectives

Storm-1516 Outpaces RT in Spreading Ukraine Disinformation

12/26/2025

Summary

Story summary

Storm-1516, a covert Russian disinformation operation, has surpassed RT and Sputnik in spreading false narratives about the war in Ukraine.
NewsGuard analysis shows Storm-1516 produced 24 false claims in 2025, versus 15 from RT and Sputnik combined, signaling Russia's reliance on covert tactics amid international scrutiny.
The operation is linked to John Mark Dougan and uses AI to create deepfake videos and deceives major AI chatbots as verified facts.

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Story summary

Storm-1516, a covert Russian disinformation operation, has surpassed RT and Sputnik in spreading false narratives about the war in Ukraine.
NewsGuard analysis shows Storm-1516 produced 24 false claims in 2025, versus 15 from RT and Sputnik combined, signaling Russia's reliance on covert tactics amid international scrutiny.
The operation is linked to John Mark Dougan and uses AI to create deepfake videos and deceives major AI chatbots as verified facts.