Background to “Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions
in Recent US Elections”: The Analytic Process and Cyber
Incident Attribution

6 January 2017

Background to “Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent US
Elections”: The Analytic Process and Cyber Incident Attribution“Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in Recent US Elections” is a declassified version of a highlyclassified assessment that has been provided to the President and to recipients approved by the
President.


The Intelligence Community rarely can publicly reveal the full extent of its knowledge or the precise
bases for its assessments, as the release of such information would reveal sensitive sources or
methods and imperil the ability to collect critical foreign intelligence in the future.

Thus, while the conclusions in the report are all reflected in the classified assessment, the declassified
report does not and cannot include the full supporting information, including specific intelligence andsources and methods.

The Analytic Process
The mission of the Intelligence Community is to seek to reduce the uncertainty surrounding foreign
activities, capabilities, or leaders’ intentions. This objective is difficult to achieve when seeking tounderstand complex issues on which foreign actors go to extraordinary lengths to hide or obfuscate theiractivities.
On these issues of great importance to US national security, the goal of intelligence analysis is toprovide assessments to decisionmakers that are intellectually rigorous, objective, timely, and useful,and that adhere to tradecraft standards.



The tradecraft standards for analytic products have been refined over the past ten years. Thesestandards include describing sources (including their reliability and access to the information they
provide), clearly expressing uncertainty, distinguishing between underlying information and analysts’
judgments and assumptions, exploring alternatives, demonstrating relevance to the customer, using
strong and transparent logic, and explaining change or consistency in judgments over time.



Applying these standards helps ensure that the Intelligence Community provides US policymakers,
warfighters, and operators with the best and most accurate insight, warning, and context, as well as
potential opportunities to advance US national security.

Intelligence Community analysts integrate information from a wide range of sources, including humansources, technical collection, and open source information, and apply specialized skills and structured
analytic tools to draw inferences informed by the data available, relevant past activity, and logic andreasoning to provide insight into what is happening and the prospects for the future.


A critical part of the analyst’s task is to explain uncertainties associated with major judgments basedon the quantity and quality of the source material, information gaps, and the complexity of the issue.

When Intelligence Community analysts use words such as “we assess” or “we judge,” they areconveying an analytic assessment or judgment.

Some analytic judgments are based directly on collected information; others rest on previous
judgments, which serve as building blocks in rigorous analysis. In either type of judgment, thetradecraft standards outlined above ensure that analysts have an appropriate basis for the judgment.

1Intelligence Community judgments often include two important elements: judgments of how likely itis that something has happened or will happen (using terms such as “likely” or “unlikely”) andconfidence levels in those judgments (low, moderate, and high) that refer to the evidentiary basis,
logic and reasoning, and precedents that underpin the judgments.

Determining Attribution in Cyber Incidents
The nature of cyberspace makes attribution of cyber operations difficult but not impossible. Every kind ofcyber operation—malicious or not—leaves a trail. US Intelligence Community analysts use thisinformation, their constantly growing knowledge base of previous events and known malicious actors, andtheir knowledge of how these malicious actors work and the tools that they use, to attempt to trace these
operations back to their source. In every case, they apply the same tradecraft standards described in the
Analytic Process above.


Analysts consider a series of questions to assess how the information compares with existingknowledge and adjust their confidence in their judgments as appropriate to account for any
alternative hypotheses and ambiguities.

An assessment of attribution usually is not a simple statement of who conducted an operation, butrather a series of judgments that describe whether it was an isolated incident, who was the likely
perpetrator, that perpetrator’s possible motivations, and whether a foreign government had a role inordering or leading the operation.

2

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
This report is a downgraded version of a more sensitive assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the more sensitive
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in
Recent US Elections

ICA 2017-01D | 6 January 2017

TOP SECRET//HCS-P/SI-G//ORCON/NOFORN/FISAThis report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

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This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Scope and Sourcing
Information available as of 29 December 2016 was used in the preparation of this product.
Scope
This report includes an analytic assessment drafted and coordinated among The Central Intelligence
Agency (CIA), The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and The National Security Agency (NSA), whichdraws on intelligence information collected and disseminated by those three agencies. It covers the
motivation and scope of Moscow’s intentions regarding US elections and Moscow’s use of cyber tools
and media campaigns to influence US public opinion. The assessment focuses on activities aimed at the2016 US presidential election and draws on our understanding of previous Russian influence operations.
When we use the term “we” it refers to an assessment by all three agencies.
This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment. This document’s conclusions are
identical to the highly classified assessment, but this document does not include the full supporting
information, including specific intelligence on key elements of the influence campaign. Given theredactions, we made minor edits purely for readability and flow.

We did not make an assessment of the impact that Russian activities had on the outcome of the 2016
election. The US Intelligence Community is charged with monitoring and assessing the intentions,capabilities, and actions of foreign actors; it does not analyze US political processes or US public opinion.


New information continues to emerge, providing increased insight into Russian activities.

Sourcing
Many of the key judgments in this assessment rely on a body of reporting from multiple sources that areconsistent with our understanding of Russian behavior. Insights into Russian efforts—including specificcyber operations—and Russian views of key US players derive from multiple corroborating sources.
Some of our judgments about Kremlin preferences and intent are drawn from the behavior of Kremlinloyal political figures, state media, and pro-Kremlin social media actors, all of whom the Kremlin either
directly uses to convey messages or who are answerable to the Kremlin. The Russian leadership invests
significant resources in both foreign and domestic propaganda and places a premium on transmitting
what it views as consistent, self-reinforcing narratives regarding its desires and redlines, whether on
Ukraine, Syria, or relations with the United States.

iThis report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Assessing Russian Activities and Intentions in
Recent US Elections
ICA 2017-01D
6 January 2017

Key Judgments
Russian efforts to influence the 2016 US presidential election represent the most recent expressionof Moscow’s longstanding desire to undermine the US-led liberal democratic order, but these
activities demonstrated a significant escalation in directness, level of activity, and scope of effort
compared to previous operations.
We assess Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the US
presidential election. Russia’s goals were to undermine public faith in the US democratic process,denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm her electability and potential presidency. We further assess
Putin and the Russian Government developed a clear preference for President-elect Trump. We
have high confidence in these judgments.


We also assess Putin and the Russian Government aspired to help President-elect Trump’s
election chances when possible by discrediting Secretary Clinton and publicly contrasting her
unfavorably to him. All three agencies agree with this judgment. CIA and FBI have high confidence
in this judgment; NSA has moderate confidence.



Moscow’s approach evolved over the course of the campaign based on Russia’s understanding of theelectoral prospects of the two main candidates. When it appeared to Moscow that Secretary Clinton
was likely to win the election, the Russian influence campaign began to focus more on undermining
her future presidency.

Further information has come to light since Election Day that, when combined with Russian behavior
since early November 2016, increases our confidence in our assessments of Russian motivations andgoals.

Moscow’s influence campaign followed a Russian messaging strategy that blends covert
intelligence operations—such as cyber activity—with overt efforts by Russian Government
agencies, state-funded media, third-party intermediaries, and paid social media users or “trolls.”
Russia, like its Soviet predecessor, has a history of conducting covert influence campaigns focused on US
presidential elections that have used intelligence officers and agents and press placements to disparage
candidates perceived as hostile to the Kremlin.


Russia’s intelligence services conducted cyber operations against targets associated with the 2016 US
presidential election, including targets associated with both major US political parties.



We assess with high confidence that Russian military intelligence (General Staff Main Intelligence
Directorate or GRU) used the Guccifer 2.0 persona and DCLeaks.com to release US victim dataii

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

obtained in cyber operations publicly and in exclusives to media outlets and relayed material to
WikiLeaks.


Russian intelligence obtained and maintained access to elements of multiple US state or local
electoral boards. DHS assesses that the types of systems Russian actors targeted orcompromised were not involved in vote tallying.

Russia’s state-run propaganda machine contributed to the influence campaign by serving as aplatform for Kremlin messaging to Russian and international audiences.

We assess Moscow will apply lessons learned from its Putin-ordered campaign aimed at the US
presidential election to future influence efforts worldwide, including against US allies and theirelection processes.

iii

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Contents
Scope and Sourcing

i
ii
iv

Key Judgments
Contents

CIA/FBI/NSA Assessment: Russia’s Influence Campaign Targeting the2016 US Presidential Election
Putin Ordered Campaign To Influence US Election

1

Russian Campaign Was Multifaceted

2

Influence Effort Was Boldest Yet in the US

5

Election Operation Signals “New Normal” in Russian Influence Efforts

5

Annexes
A: Russia—Kremlin’s TV Seeks To Influence Politics, Fuel Discontent in US
B: Estimative Language

iv

6
13

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Russia’s Influence Campaign Targeting the 2016 US
Presidential Election

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Russia’s Influence Campaign Targeting the 2016 US
Presidential Election
Putin Ordered Campaign To Influence US
Election

We assess with high confidence that Russian
President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence
campaign in 2016 aimed at the US presidential
election, the consistent goals of which were toundermine public faith in the US democratic
process, denigrate Secretary Clinton, and harm herelectability and potential presidency. We further
assess Putin and the Russian Government
developed a clear preference for President-electTrump. When it appeared to Moscow that
Secretary Clinton was likely to win the election, theRussian influence campaign then focused onundermining her expected presidency.


We also assess Putin and the Russian
Government aspired to help President-electTrump’s election chances when possible bydiscrediting Secretary Clinton and publicly
contrasting her unfavorably to him. All threeagencies agree with this judgment. CIA andFBI have high confidence in this judgment;
NSA has moderate confidence.

In trying to influence the US election, we assess
the Kremlin sought to advance its longstanding
desire to undermine the US-led liberal
democratic order, the promotion of which
Putin and other senior Russian leaders view asa threat to Russia and Putin’s regime.

Putin most likely wanted to discredit Secretary
Clinton because he has publicly blamed hersince 2011 for inciting mass protests against
his regime in late 2011 and early 2012, andbecause he holds a grudge for comments healmost certainly saw as disparaging him.

We assess Putin, his advisers, and the Russian
Government developed a clear preference for
President-elect Trump over Secretary Clinton.

Putin publicly pointed to the Panama Papers
disclosure and the Olympic doping scandal as
US-directed efforts to defame Russia,
suggesting he sought to use disclosures todiscredit the image of the United States andcast it as hypocritical.

1

Beginning in June, Putin’s public comments
about the US presidential race avoided directly
praising President-elect Trump, probably
because Kremlin officials thought that any
praise from Putin personally would backfire in
the United States. Nonetheless, Putin publicly
indicated a preference for President-electTrump’s stated policy to work with Russia, andpro-Kremlin figures spoke highly about what
they saw as his Russia-friendly positions on
Syria and Ukraine. Putin publicly contrasted thePresident-elect’s approach to Russia with
Secretary Clinton’s “aggressive rhetoric.”Moscow also saw the election of Presidentelect Trump as a way to achieve aninternational counterterrorism coalition against
the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL).



Putin has had many positive experiences
working with Western political leaders whosebusiness interests made them more disposed
to deal with Russia, such as former ItalianPrime Minister Silvio Berlusconi and former
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder.

Putin, Russian officials, and other pro-Kremlin
pundits stopped publicly criticizing the US
election process as unfair almost immediately

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

after the election because Moscow probably
assessed it would be counterproductive tobuilding positive relations.



We assess the influence campaign aspired to help
President-elect Trump’s chances of victory whenpossible by discrediting Secretary Clinton andpublicly contrasting her unfavorably to the
President-elect. When it appeared to Moscow that
Secretary Clinton was likely to win the presidency
the Russian influence campaign focused more onundercutting Secretary Clinton’s legitimacy andcrippling her presidency from its start, including by
impugning the fairness of the election.


By their nature, Russian influence campaigns
are multifaceted and designed to be deniablebecause they use a mix of agents of influence,
cutouts, front organizations, and false-flag
operations. Moscow demonstrated this during
the Ukraine crisis in 2014, when Russia
deployed forces and advisers to eastern
Ukraine and denied it publicly.

The Kremlin’s campaign aimed at the US election
featured disclosures of data obtained throughRussian cyber operations; intrusions into US stateand local electoral boards; and overt propaganda.
Russian intelligence collection both informed andenabled the influence campaign.

Before the election, Russian diplomats had
publicly denounced the US electoral process
and were prepared to publicly call into
question the validity of the results. ProKremlin bloggers had prepared a Twitter
campaign, #DemocracyRIP, on election night inanticipation of Secretary Clinton’s victory,
judging from their social media activity.

Cyber Espionage Against US Political
Organizations. Russia’s intelligence services
conducted cyber operations against targets
associated with the 2016 US presidential election,
including targets associated with both major US
political parties.
We assess Russian intelligence services collectedagainst the US primary campaigns, think tanks, andlobbying groups they viewed as likely to shape
future US policies. In July 2015, Russian
intelligence gained access to Democratic National
Committee (DNC) networks and maintained thataccess until at least June 2016.

Russian Campaign Was Multifaceted
Moscow’s use of disclosures during the US election
was unprecedented, but its influence campaign
otherwise followed a longstanding Russian
messaging strategy that blends covert intelligence
operations—such as cyber activity—with overt
efforts by Russian Government agencies, statefunded media, third-party intermediaries, and paidsocial media users or “trolls.”


We assess that influence campaigns areapproved at the highest levels of the Russian
Government—particularly those that would bepolitically sensitive.

The General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate(GRU) probably began cyber operations aimed
at the US election by March 2016. We assessthat the GRU operations resulted in thecompromise of the personal e-mail accounts of
Democratic Party officials and political figures.
By May, the GRU had exfiltrated large volumesof data from the DNC.



Moscow’s campaign aimed at the US election
reflected years of investment in its capabilities,
which Moscow has honed in the former Soviet
states.

Public Disclosures of Russian-Collected Data.
We assess with high confidence that the GRU used
the Guccifer 2.0 persona, DCLeaks.com, andWikiLeaks to release US victim data obtained in

2This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

cyber operations publicly and in exclusives tomedia outlets.


These election-related disclosures reflect a patternof Russian intelligence using hacked information intargeted influence efforts against targets such as
Olympic athletes and other foreign governments.
Such efforts have included releasing or altering
personal data, defacing websites, or releasing emails.

Guccifer 2.0, who claimed to be an
independent Romanian hacker, made multiple
contradictory statements and false claims
about his likely Russian identity throughout theelection. Press reporting suggests more than
one person claiming to be Guccifer 2.0
interacted with journalists.

Content that we assess was taken from e-mailaccounts targeted by the GRU in March 2016
appeared on DCLeaks.com starting in June.

Russia collected on some Republican-affiliatedtargets but did not conduct a comparable
disclosure campaign.

We assess with high confidence that the GRU
relayed material it acquired from the DNC andsenior Democratic officials to WikiLeaks. Moscow
most likely chose WikiLeaks because of its selfproclaimed reputation for authenticity. Disclosuresthrough WikiLeaks did not contain any evident
forgeries.


A prominent target since the 2016 Summer
Olympics has been the World Anti-Doping
Agency (WADA), with leaks that we assess tohave originated with the GRU and that have
involved data on US athletes.

Russian Cyber Intrusions Into State and Local
Electoral Boards. Russian intelligence accessed
elements of multiple state or local electoral boards.
Since early 2014, Russian intelligence has
researched US electoral processes and related
technology and equipment.

In early September, Putin said publicly it was
important the DNC data was exposed to
WikiLeaks, calling the search for the source ofthe leaks a distraction and denying Russian“state-level” involvement.



DHS assesses that the types of systems weobserved Russian actors targeting orcompromising are not involved in vote tallying.

Russian Propaganda Efforts. Russia’s state-run
propaganda machine—comprised of its domestic
media apparatus, outlets targeting global
audiences such as RT and Sputnik, and a networkof quasi-government trolls—contributed to the
influence campaign by serving as a platform for
Kremlin messaging to Russian and international
audiences. State-owned Russian media madeincreasingly favorable comments about Presidentelect Trump as the 2016 US general and primaryelection campaigns progressed while consistently
offering negative coverage of Secretary Clinton.

The Kremlin’s principal international
propaganda outlet RT (formerly Russia Today)
has actively collaborated with WikiLeaks. RT’s
editor-in-chief visited WikiLeaks founder Julian
Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in Londonin August 2013, where they discussed renewing
his broadcast contract with RT, according to
Russian and Western media. Russian media
subsequently announced that RT had become"the only Russian media company" to partnerwith WikiLeaks and had received access to"new leaks of secret information." RT routinely
gives Assange sympathetic coverage andprovides him a platform to denounce theUnited States.

3Starting in March 2016, Russian Government–
linked actors began openly supporting
President-elect Trump’s candidacy in media

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

aimed at English-speaking audiences. RT and
Sputnik—another government-funded outlet
producing pro-Kremlin radio and online
content in a variety of languages forinternational audiences—consistently castPresident-elect Trump as the target of unfair
coverage from traditional US media outlets
that they claimed were subservient to a corrupt
political establishment.


Russian media hailed President-elect Trump’s
victory as a vindication of Putin’s advocacy of
global populist movements—the theme of
Putin’s annual conference for Western
academics in October 2016—and the latest
example of Western liberalism’s collapse.

Putin’s chief propagandist Dmitriy Kiselev used
his flagship weekly newsmagazine program
this fall to cast President-elect Trump as an
outsider victimized by a corrupt politicalestablishment and faulty democratic election
process that aimed to prevent his election
because of his desire to work with Moscow.

on Putin by airing segments devoted to
Secretary Clinton’s alleged health problems.
On 6 August, RT published an Englishlanguage video called “Julian Assange Special:
Do WikiLeaks Have the E-mail That’ll Put
Clinton in Prison?” and an exclusive interview
with Assange entitled “Clinton and ISIS Fundedby the Same Money.” RT’s most popular video
on Secretary Clinton, “How 100% of the
Clintons’ ‘Charity’ Went to…Themselves,” hadmore than 9 million views on social media
platforms. RT’s most popular English language
video about the President-elect, called “Trump
Will Not Be Permitted To Win,” featured
Assange and had 2.2 million views.

For more on Russia’s past media efforts—
including portraying the 2012 US electoral
process as undemocratic—please see Annex A:
Russia—Kremlin's TV Seeks To Influence
Politics, Fuel Discontent in US.

Russia used trolls as well as RT as part of its
influence efforts to denigrate Secretary Clinton.
This effort amplified stories on scandals about
Secretary Clinton and the role of WikiLeaks in theelection campaign.

Pro-Kremlin proxy Vladimir Zhirinovskiy, leaderof the nationalist Liberal Democratic Party ofRussia, proclaimed just before the election that
if President-elect Trump won, Russia would“drink champagne” in anticipation of being
able to advance its positions on Syria andUkraine.

RT’s coverage of Secretary Clinton throughout the
US presidential campaign was consistently negativeand focused on her leaked e-mails and accused herof corruption, poor physical and mental health, andties to Islamic extremism. Some Russian officials
echoed Russian lines for the influence campaignthat Secretary Clinton’s election could lead to a war
between the United States and Russia.
In August, Kremlin-linked political analysts
suggested avenging negative Western reports

4

The likely financier of the so-called Internet
Research Agency of professional trolls locatedin Saint Petersburg is a close Putin ally with ties
to Russian intelligence.



A journalist who is a leading expert on theInternet Research Agency claimed that somesocial media accounts that appear to be tied to
Russia’s professional trolls—because theypreviously were devoted to supporting Russian
actions in Ukraine—started to advocate for
President-elect Trump as early as December
2015.

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Election Operation Signals “New Normal” in
Russian Influence Efforts

Influence Effort Was Boldest Yet in the US
Russia’s effort to influence the 2016 US presidential
election represented a significant escalation in
directness, level of activity, and scope of effort
compared to previous operations aimed at US
elections. We assess the 2016 influence campaign
reflected the Kremlin’s recognition of theworldwide effects that mass disclosures of US
Government and other private data—such as those
conducted by WikiLeaks and others—have
achieved in recent years, and their understandingof the value of orchestrating such disclosures tomaximize the impact of compromising information.


We assess Moscow will apply lessons learned fromits campaign aimed at the US presidential election
to future influence efforts in the United States andworldwide, including against US allies and theirelection processes. We assess the Russian
intelligence services would have seen their election
influence campaign as at least a qualified successbecause of their perceived ability to impact public
discussion.
Putin’s public views of the disclosures suggest
the Kremlin and the intelligence services willcontinue to consider using cyber-enableddisclosure operations because of their belief
that these can accomplish Russian goals
relatively easily without significant damage to
Russian interests.



Russia has sought to influence elections acrossEurope.

During the Cold War, the Soviet Union used
intelligence officers, influence agents, forgeries,
and press placements to disparage candidates
perceived as hostile to the Kremlin, according
to a former KGB archivist.

Since the Cold War, Russian intelligence efforts
related to US elections have primarily focused on
foreign intelligence collection. For decades,
Russian and Soviet intelligence services havesought to collect insider information from US
political parties that could help Russian leaders
understand a new US administration’s plans andpriorities.


The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR)
Directorate S (Illegals) officers arrested in the
United States in 2010 reported to Moscow
about the 2008 election.

In the 1970s, the KGB recruited a Democratic
Party activist who reported information about
then-presidential hopeful Jimmy Carter’s
campaign and foreign policy plans, according
to a former KGB archivist.

We assess Russian intelligence services willcontinue to develop capabilities to provide Putin
with options to use against the United States,
judging from past practice and current efforts.
Immediately after Election Day, we assess Russian
intelligence began a spearphishing campaign
targeting US Government employees andindividuals associated with US think tanks andNGOs in national security, defense, and foreign
policy fields. This campaign could provide material
for future influence efforts as well as foreign
intelligence collection on the incoming
administration’s goals and plans.

5This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Annex A
Russia -- Kremlin's TV Seeks To Influence Politics, Fuel Discontent in US *RT America TV, a Kremlin-financed channel operated from within the United States, has substantiallyexpanded its repertoire of programming that highlights criticism of alleged US shortcomings in democracy
and civil liberties. The rapid expansion of RT's operations and budget and recent candid statements by RT's
leadership point to the channel's importance to the Kremlin as a messaging tool and indicate a Kremlindirected campaign to undermine faith in the US Government and fuel political protest. The Kremlin has
committed significant resources to expanding the channel's reach, particularly its social media footprint. A
reliable UK report states that RT recently was the most-watched foreign news channel in the UK. RT
America has positioned itself as a domestic US channel and has deliberately sought to obscure any legal ties
to the Russian Government.
In the runup to the 2012 US presidential election in November, English-language channel RT America -created and financed by the Russian Government and part of Russian Government-sponsored RT TV (seetextbox 1) -- intensified its usually critical coverage of the United States. The channel portrayed the US
electoral process as undemocratic and featured calls by US protesters for the public to rise up and "takethis government back."

RT introduced two new shows -- "Breaking
the Set" on 4 September and "Truthseeker"
on 2 November -- both overwhelmingly
focused on criticism of US and Westerngovernments as well as the promotion ofradical discontent.



From August to November 2012, RT ran
numerous reports on alleged US election
fraud and voting machine vulnerabilities,
contending that US election results cannot
be trusted and do not reflect the popular
will.



Messaging on RT prior to the US presidential election
In an effort to highlight the alleged "lack of(RT, 3 November)democracy" in the United States, RT
broadcast, hosted, and advertised thirdparty candidate debates and ran reporting supportive of the political agenda of these candidates.
The RT hosts asserted that the US two-party system does not represent the views of at least one-thirdof the population and is a "sham."*This annex was originally published on 11 December 2012 by the Open Source Center, now the Open SourceEnterprise.
6

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

RT aired a documentary about the Occupy
Wall Street movement on 1, 2, and4 November. RT framed the movement as afight against "the ruling class" and described
the current US political system as corrupt anddominated by corporations. RT advertising
for the documentary featured Occupy
movement calls to "take back" thegovernment. The documentary claimed that
the US system cannot be changed
democratically, but only through "revolution."
After the 6 November US presidential
election, RT aired a documentary called"Cultures of Protest," about active and often
violent political resistance (RT, 110 November).

RT new show "Truthseeker" (RT, 11 November)

RT Conducts Strategic Messaging for Russian Government
RT's criticism of the US election was the latest facet of its broader and longer-standing anti-US messaging
likely aimed at undermining viewers' trust in US democratic procedures and undercutting US criticism of
Russia's political system. RT Editor in Chief Margarita Simonyan recently declared that the United Statesitself lacks democracy and that it has "no moral right to teach the rest of the world" (Kommersant,6 November).


Simonyan has characterized RT's coverage of
the Occupy Wall Street movement as"information warfare" that is aimed atpromoting popular dissatisfaction with the US
Government. RT created a Facebook app toconnect Occupy Wall Street protesters via
social media. In addition, RT featured its own
hosts in Occupy rallies ("Minaev Live," 10 April;RT, 2, 12 June).

RT's reports often characterize the UnitedStates as a "surveillance state" and allege
widespread infringements of civil liberties,
police brutality, and drone use (RT, 24,
28 October, 1-10 November).



Simonyan steps over the White House in the
introduction from her short-lived domestic show
on REN TV (REN TV, 26 December 2011)

RT has also focused on criticism of the US
economic system, US currency policy, alleged
Wall Street greed, and the US national debt. Some of RT's hosts have compared the United States toImperial Rome and have predicted that government corruption and "corporate greed" will lead to US
financial collapse (RT, 31 October, 4 November).

7

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

RT broadcasts support for other Russian interests in areas such as foreign and energy policy.
RT runs anti-fracking programming,
highlighting environmental issues and theimpacts on public health. This is likely
reflective of the Russian Government's
concern about the impact of fracking and
US natural gas production on the global
energy market and the potential challenges
to Gazprom's profitability (5 October).

RT is a leading media voice opposing
Western intervention in the Syrian conflictand blaming the West for waging"information wars" against the Syrian
Government (RT, 10 October-9 November).



RT anti-fracking reporting (RT, 5 October)

In an earlier example of RT's messaging in
support of the Russian Government, during the Georgia-Russia military conflict the channel accused
Georgians of killing civilians and organizing a genocide of the Ossetian people. According to
Simonyan, when "the Ministry of Defense was at war with Georgia," RT was "waging an information
war against the entire Western world" (Kommersant, 11 July).

In recent interviews, RT's leadership has candidly acknowledged its mission to expand its US audience andto expose it to Kremlin messaging. However, the leadership rejected claims that RT interferes in US
domestic affairs.
Simonyan claimed in popular arts magazine Afisha on 3 October: "It is important to have a channel
that people get used to, and then, when needed, you show them what you need to show. In somesense, not having our own foreign broadcasting is the same as not having a ministry of defense.
When there is no war, it looks like we don't need it. However, when there is a war, it is critical."

According to Simonyan, "the word 'propaganda' has a very negative connotation, but indeed, there is
not a single international foreign TV channel that is doing something other than promotion of thevalues of the country that it is broadcasting from." She added that "when Russia is at war, we are, ofcourse, on Russia's side" (Afisha, 3 October; Kommersant, 4 July).

TV-Novosti director Nikolov said on 4 October to the Association of Cable Television that RT builds on
worldwide demand for "an alternative view of the entire world." Simonyan asserted on 3 October in
Afisha that RT's goal is "to make an alternative channel that shares information unavailable elsewhere"
in order to "conquer the audience" and expose it to Russian state messaging (Afisha, 3 October;
Kommersant, 4 July).

On 26 May, Simonyan tweeted with irony: "Ambassador McFaul hints that our channel is interferencewith US domestic affairs. And we, sinful souls, were thinking that it is freedom of speech."8This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

RT Leadership Closely Tied to, Controlled by Kremlin
RT Editor in Chief Margarita Simonyan has close ties to top Russian Government officials, especially
Presidential Administration Deputy Chief of Staff Aleksey Gromov, who reportedly manages political TV
coverage in Russia and is one of the founders of RT.


Simonyan has claimed that Gromovshielded her from other officials and theirrequests to air certain reports. Russian
media consider Simonyan to be Gromov's
protege (Kommersant, 4 July; Dozhd TV,
11 July).



Simonyan replaced Gromov on stateowned Channel One's Board of Directors.
Government officials, including Gromov
and Putin's Press Secretary Peskov wereinvolved in creating RT and appointing
Simonyan (Afisha, 3 October).



According to Simonyan, Gromov oversees
political coverage on TV, and he has
periodic meetings with media managers
where he shares classified informationand discusses their coverage plans. Some
opposition journalists, including Andrey
Loshak, claim that he also ordered media
attacks on opposition figures(Kommersant, 11 July).

Simonyan shows RT facilities to then Prime Minister
Putin. Simonyan was on Putin's 2012 presidential
election campaign staff in Moscow (Rospress, 22
September 2010, Ria Novosti, 25 October 2012).

The Kremlin staffs RT and closely supervises
RT's coverage, recruiting people who canconvey Russian strategic messaging because of their ideological beliefs.


The head of RT's Arabic-language service, Aydar Aganin, was rotated from the diplomatic service tomanage RT's Arabic-language expansion, suggesting a close relationship between RT and Russia'sforeign policy apparatus. RT's London Bureau is managed by Darya Pushkova, the daughter ofAleksey Pushkov, the current chair of the Duma Russian Foreign Affairs Committee and a former
Gorbachev speechwriter (DXB, 26 March 2009; MK.ru, 13 March 2006).



According to Simonyan, the Russian Government sets rating and viewership requirements for RT and,"since RT receives budget from the state, it must complete tasks given by the state." According to
Nikolov, RT news stories are written and edited "to become news" exclusively in RT's Moscow office(Dozhd TV, 11 July; AKT, 4 October).



In her interview with pro-Kremlin journalist Sergey Minaev, Simonyan complimented RT staff in the
United States for passionately defending Russian positions on the air and in social media. Simonyan
said: "I wish you could see…how these guys, not just on air, but on their own social networks, Twitter,
and when giving interviews, how they defend the positions that we stand on!" ("Minaev Live,"
10 April).
9

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

RT Focuses on Social Media, Building Audience
RT aggressively advertises its social media accounts and has a significant and fast-growing social media
footprint. In line with its efforts to present itself as anti-mainstream and to provide viewers alternative
news content, RT is making its social media operations a top priority, both to avoid broadcast TV
regulations and to expand its overall audience.


According to RT management, RT's website receives at least 500,000 unique viewers every day. Since
its inception in 2005, RT videos received more than 800 million views on YouTube (1 million views perday), which is the highest among news outlets (see graphics for comparison with other news
channels) (AKT, 4 October).



According to Simonyan, the TV audience worldwide is losing trust in traditional TV broadcasts andstations, while the popularity of "alternative channels" like RT or Al Jazeera grows. RT markets itself as
an "alternative channel" that is available via the Internet everywhere in the world, and it encourages
interaction and social networking (Kommersant, 29 September).



According to Simonyan, RT uses social media to expand the reach of its political reporting and uses
well-trained people to monitor public opinion in social media commentaries (Kommersant,29 September).



According to Nikolov, RT requires its hosts to have social media accounts, in part because social
media allows the distribution of content that would not be allowed on television (Newreporter.org,
11 October).



Simonyan claimed in her 3 October interview to independent TV channel Dozhd that Occupy WallStreet coverage gave RT a significant audience boost.

The Kremlin spends $190 million a year on the distribution and dissemination of RT programming,
focusing on hotels and satellite, terrestrial, and cable broadcasting. The Kremlin is rapidly expanding RT's
availability around the world and giving it a reach comparable to channels such as Al Jazeera English.
According to Simonyan, the United Kingdom and the United States are RT's most successful markets. RT
does not, however, publish audience information.


According to market research company Nielsen, RT had the most rapid growth (40 percent) among allinternational news channels in the United States over the past year (2012). Its audience in New York
tripled and in Washington DC grew by 60% (Kommersant, 4 July).

RT claims that it is surpassing Al Jazeera in viewership in New York and Washington DC (BARB,
20 November; RT, 21 November).

RT states on its website that it can reach more than 550 million people worldwide and 85 million
people in the United States; however, it does not publicize its actual US audience numbers (RT,10 December).

10

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

11This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Formal Disassociation From Kremlin Facilitates RT US Messaging
RT America formally disassociates itself from the Russian Government by using a Moscow-based
autonomous nonprofit organization to finance its US operations. According to RT's leadership, thisstructure was set up to avoid the Foreign Agents Registration Act and to facilitate licensing abroad. In
addition, RT rebranded itself in 2008 to deemphasize its Russian origin.


According to Simonyan, RT America differs from other Russian state institutions in terms ofownership, but not in terms of financing. To disassociate RT from the Russian Government, thefederal news agency RIA Novosti established a subsidiary autonomous nonprofit organization, TVNovosti, using the formal independence of this company to establish and finance RT worldwide(Dozhd TV, 11 July).

Nikolov claimed that RT is an "autonomous noncommercial entity," which is "well received by foreign
regulators" and "simplifies getting a license." Simonyan said that RT America is not a "foreign agent"according to US law because it uses a US commercial organization for its broadcasts (AKT, 4 October;Dozhd TV, 11 July).

Simonyan observed that RT's original Russia-centric news reporting did not generate sufficientaudience, so RT switched to covering international and US domestic affairs and removed the words"Russia Today" from the logo "to stop scaring away the audience" (Afisha, 18 October; Kommersant,4 July).

RT hires or makes contractual agreements with Westerners with views that fit its agenda and airs themon RT. Simonyan said on the pro-Kremlin show "Minaev Live" on 10 April that RT has enoughaudience and money to be able to choose its hosts, and it chooses the hosts that "think like us," "areinterested in working in the anti-mainstream," and defend RT's beliefs on social media. Some hosts
and journalists do not present themselves as associated with RT when interviewing people, and manyof them have affiliations to other media and activist organizations in the United States ("Minaev Live,"
10 April).

12

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

Annex B

13

This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.

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This report is a declassified version of a highly classified assessment; its conclusions are identical to those in the highly classified
assessment but this version does not include the full supporting information on key elements of the influence campaign.