What was it like to work in Russian Public Television?

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In 2013, Ms. Martin invited Tyrel Ventura, the son of Minnesota’s former professional wrestler and Reform Party governor, to her show as a guest. He had a YouTube talk show where he often spoke out against the war and was skeptical of the mainstream media. After appearing as a guest, Mr. Solodovnikov said he liked what he heard. Mr. Ventura also said that he told Mr. Ventura, who was clean and shaven, that he looked beautiful on TV.

Mr. Ventura was soon hired to bring “Watching the Hawks”, the online show he co-hosted with Mr. Stone, to RT America.

At the same time, Mr. Solodovnikov took a big break. In May 2013, RT America signed a deal with Larry King’s Ora TV to distribute the programming of Mr. King and eventually other personalities including William Shatner and Dennis Miller. Some of the programs would be created from RT America’s Washington office. Suddenly, the network had household names on its roster. John Dickey, CEO of Ora Media, declined to disclose the value of the contract.

Soon, RT America faced a major public test. In February 2014, Russia invaded and soon annexed the Ukrainian region of Crimea, then stepped up its aggression and supported separatists who attacked Ukrainian forces in the country’s Donbas region.

RT America often reflected events differently from American news outlets. Liz Wahl, a former presenter, said her news director told her not to use the word “invasion” and to refer to Russian soldiers as “peacekeepers”.

The network removed a question it asked former Texas representative and presidential candidate Ron Paul about how the United States should respond to Russia. He said he was startled as he watched a reporter talk about Ukrainian forces as having “neo-Nazi elements.” On March 5, 2014, Ms. Wahl resigned from the broadcast in protest.

“RT is not about reality,” he later said in an interview with CNN. “It’s about promoting a Putinist agenda, and I can tell you firsthand, it’s about crushing America.”

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