(EDM) Grand geopolitical scheming took a break in Moscow last week. The main news—improbably—turned to the fiasco of the government trying, since April 16, to ban the popular instant messenger Telegram. Millions of Russians remain blissfully unaware about this “state failure,” but probably as many others are following it with keen interest; in fact, use of this popular app has actually increased since being “blocked” in Russia (RBC, April 19). The state’s media regulator, known by its Soviet-style name Roskomnadzor, has been trying every means at its disposal to block the virtual channels that carry Telegram messages. But even some government institutions have subscribed to private VPN networks in order to circumvent this blockade (Novaya Gazeta, April 20). Pavel Durov, the Internet entrepreneur who invented Telegram, has become a hero to Russians resisting the awkward state policy of enforcing control over information flows (RTVi, April 20). […]
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