A German politician has been filmed taking large sums of cash from a Kremlin-supporting broadcaster, Czech intelligence has claimed.

Petr Bystron, who is standing for Alternative for Germany (AfD) at European parliamentary elections in June, allegedly received €20,000 (£17,000) in cash from the manager of a Russian propaganda network while sitting in a parked car, recordings indicate.

Mr Bystron, who also sits on the Bundestag’s foreign affairs committee, has previously denied allegations of taking Russian money as a “defamation campaign”.

The Security Information Service (BIS), the Czech Republic’s domestic intelligence agency, now says Mr Bystron met with Artem Marchevsky, who allegedly managed a Kremlin-backed propaganda front called Voice of Europe, at least three times in the past six months.

  • Regrettable_incident@lemmy.world
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    20
    ·
    edit-2
    7 months ago

    The problem with democracy is that to really work it requires an informed electorate, and a lot of the information the electorate get is propaganda. But like you say, I don’t have a better alternative to offer.

    • GregorGizeh@lemmy.zip
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      12
      ·
      7 months ago

      Pretty much this. The average voter is by all objective measures not qualified to decide on political matters, its just that not having every mouthbreather have a voice has always led to autocracy in every single attempt made.

    • oce 🐆@jlai.lu
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      6
      ·
      7 months ago

      Let’s genetically engineer Renaissance style perfect humanist dictators.