Tenet Media was highly effective in disseminating pro-Russia propaganda thanks in large part to amplification by Elon Musk, claims Ben Scott, CEO of Reset Tech, a London-based nonprofit. Scott, speaking at a Canadian parliamentary committee investigating Russian interference and disinformation campaigns, said Musk had “dramatically” increased the audience for Tenet’s content.

Tenet Media, a Canadian-owned company founded in 2022, ceased operations in September after a U.S. Department of Justice indictment alleged that employees of Russian state broadcaster RT paid it US$9.7 million to produce pro-Kremlin propaganda.

Russia’s reach: Between November 2023 and September 2024, Tenet’s content was distributed across social media, garnering 20 billion impressions on X alone, Scott told the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security (SECU). Of particular success: right-wing influencer Dave Rubin, whose podcast was part of Tenet’s roster. “It’s important to note that $10 million for 20 billion impressions is extraordinary value for money, and it means that we can fully expect that we will see more attacks of this kind if we already don’t have them in the marketplace today,” Scott said. 

The Elon effect: One of the features of Tenet’s campaign involved tweeting content at Musk, in hopes that he would respond or share with his 200 million followers on X. “He amplified Tenet Media posts 70 times over the course of the last year,” Scott said, potentially putting alleged Russian propaganda in front of millions of eyeballs.

The goal: In supporting Tenet and other propaganda campaigns, Russia seeks to create divides, increase polarization and otherwise weaken the West’s support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia, Central European University professor Anton Shekhovtsov told the committee. Tenet’s Canadian origins aren’t a coincidence, Scott told the committee. “A lot of the media attention has described [Tenet’s] activity as focused on the US market. But I think it’s really important to note how much of the content had a Canadian focus,” he said.

Next witnesses? Liberal SECU members urged the committee to call Lauren Chen and Liam Donovan, Tenet’s co-owners, as well as Canadian far-right influencer and Tenet staple Lauren Southern to testify. The SECU, like all standing committees, can issue summons to appear—though it is only enforceable within Canada’s borders.