One question project: Sasha Ozornin
How do you balance creating important content, staying true to your beliefs and managing public feedback (that is not always positive)?
In February 2022, when the unspeakable happened and Russia invaded Ukraine, I knew I could not remain silent. As a Russian living abroad who can speak English, I felt it was my duty to try to counter Russian propaganda in my small corner of the internet. I do this through short-form videos, stories, and posts.
I believe that when you express your opinions publicly, it's natural for there to be individuals who disagree with you. I'm comfortable with that.
I believe that if you truly stand behind something, no amount of criticism can bring you down, because you remain true to your values. If people dislike me because I support Ukraine, that's fine. They aren't the audience I want to reach. Thus, when I'm criticized by pro-Kremlin channels or supporters, which happens often, it doesn't affect me at all. In fact, it reinforces my conviction that Ukraine must prevail.
I worry about the fact that Russian troll farms can create the perception that there are many pro-Kremlin supporters online. In fact they make it seem like they are the majority on certain channels. At the end of the day though, I believe they are artificial accounts.
I can attest to this: at one point, I was targeted by troll farms on TikTok. They created fake accounts using my profile photo, sometimes photoshopping it to make me appear unflattering or to undermine me. Additionally, they flooded my comment sections with insults. Thankfully, my audience was able to see through these cheap attempts to discredit me. It's surreal to think that someone is paying for a service like this just to silence dissenting voices online.
My philosophy is to consider it a free boost in engagement and to avoid responding because the trolls likely get paid-per-response. If it gets really bad, the best option is to simply filter the comments.
It is mind-blowing that the Russian government finances trolls to try to humiliate its own citizens. One can only imagine the ferocity with which they attack Ukrainian creators on social media. Above all, it is heartbreaking that, after a year, the invasion is still ongoing. I look forward to the day when Ukraine can begin to rebuild its beautiful country and hold the Russian war criminals accountable.
About Sasha:
Sasha is content creator (“I guess you could call me a TikToker”). She is a student of art history by day but by night she makes videos and does her best to counter Russian propaganda. Before the war she would talk about numerous different topics on her TikTok channel (such as politics, controversies, interesting rabbit holes etc.) but now she is mostly focused on undermining Russian propaganda and imperialism.
She tries to make the information war waged in Russia and beyond its borders understandable to a western audience.