under false pretenses. And kept him in prison for two weeks.
Which as a communications major, is the dumbest shit I’ve seen, read, or consumed in an entire lifetime. Until this point. And thats not hyperbole - I’m just being honest here.
They could have gotten videos like this one out of it:
(minus the title, because that was published after he was jailed for two weeks on drummed up charges) -
But instead they got this gem out of it:
Which would have been insanely idiotic, if it was any Vlogger with a large audience - but is the dumbest executive/legal action any one could have possibly made in the history of autocratic governments - communications wise, when you know who they were dealing with.
Why? Because you watch that youtuber, because you want decent impressions of run down parts of countries internationally. You usually want that, because you are a professional traveler thats interested in that perspective, or you watch them as the usual youtube user to get that emotional fix, of finding “humanity” in the unlikeliest of places.
So, some fiver group of regional FSB agents just got a kick out of “well, we drove to this town to interview him for two hours, we cant possibly put in our report - that it was nothing… -- well, lets discriminate against THE ONLY PERSON THATS A 10 OUT OF 10 PERFECT MATCH as a “feel good person” for high profile international travelers, and religious people.
Its like --- you know everywhere in the world, has those unspoken rules in adjudicated law, where you dont imprison the religiously driven, insane people, by law, for crimes they didnt commit, just because you would have to write into your report, that it was nothing. Yeah. Russian FSB Agent reads “well if its an American”, thats the career opportunity of a lifetime into this!
The issue is not that we can all deduce, why his treatment was structured the way it was - I mean five minute court hearings ftw, its - that we can ALL SEE LAID BARE what errors in judgement - actually led to this.
And its so freaking hard to evaluate, whats more idiotic - that those errors in judgment were made because of what was likely seen as a career opportunity within the system at first, or because a group of in the end 12 flipping FSB agents couldnt for the FUCK of it identify what this youtube channel is about.
So lets go over this with a fine comb, why dont we. Learning opportunities for your countries communication practices - everywhere.
Who you are dealing with:
Somewhat decently educated viewers of that youtube channel understand that something like watchful handlers are a thing, in many of the countries that that media personality visits, and understand, that when that youtuber talks about a person following him for two hours by now, after he just visited the most run down part of town and didnt take the prearranged trip to a buddhist temple with the entire rest of the tourist group, that was booked into the only hotel in town - its probably not exclusively him projecting paranoia. But the thing thats kept him “rather safe” from actual mistreatment so far - is that rather religious urge to find humanity in the oddest of places - being kind of odd himself.
So - we already know that thats happening.
But then in russia, a local police officer first flips out, that “person wandering around doesnt have passport with him, only photo on phone, like those chinese do” - and then when the vlogger visits a close traversal point of critical infrastructure between russia and china, because its the only thing near a settlement worth watching, gets actually arrested by border guards.
So far everything is as expected. That stuff is idiotic, but at least understandable.
How you then get from “I filed report” to “FSB had to drive for three hours, and the people arrived where the dumbest possible kind of person that thinks they are smart” -- when dealing with a youtuber with 800.000 subscribers, is absolutely beyond me. How those people then can see a carreer opportunity in it, because they arrested an american, that can speak chinese - is an artform in itself.
And it becomes the worst kind of press you can imagine, if that youtuber, then also is able to point out, that they told him “he wasnt on government PR line, and that was a sign - that he isnt russia friendly” - because they read (or could understand) one word in youtube summary - is so fucking insane, that it immediately makes it clear to EVERY viewer, that the russian executive is much less a top down controlled system, than a gaggle of idiots, that want to be promoted, and kick down every person perceived as “below them”, when the actual authority isnt looking.
So much about the “humanity in the oddest of places” point.
After that, the overreaction by the FSB is so flipping harsh, that by now they all have to pull scheme 33f with nightly trips through forests, just to scare the person shitless, into play - so they understand that they arent welcome in the country anymore and no one should follow their example - to also show the run down places of a country, you know on youtube, when that doesnt fit the messaging of the country at war.
Great - this will work wonders, banking on the Streisand effect. Except that you still didnt understand who was watching these videos. Which again - are professional travelers, and religios nutcases/people that want the emotional fix of “friendly interactions” in the oddest of places.
So essentially, the FSB just broadcasted to the world - hey people, that already knew that this is happening, how about we show you how we abuse someone you really care about - and to people that are in it for the religious connotation (because they cant help it), in modern day russia those religious and ethical safeguards - of not mistreating a person that might have a screw lose, are worth nothing. Nothing at all.
YOU OUGHT TO TAKE A FUCKING HINT, when even the chinese stewardess on his flight out of russia smiles like a candycane price pony - when he finally lands in some god forsaken province in china, BECAUSE THE STORY OF WHAT THE FSB DID TO THIS PERSON made the rounds.
Can a group of 12 officers be any more incompetent than the FSB was in this case? No. Absolutely not.
So just for the random readers entertainment -- HERE IS THE PERSON, YOU JUST ALMOST MIGHT HAVE ARRESTED FOR 20 YEARS BECAUSE OF first drummed up drug possession charges, and then because of the opportunity of being promoted, because he actually could have had them!
First youtuber that almost didnt make it out of Nigeria, after a visit to a gang run Village:
First youtuber that tried to film the Wuhan labs after Covid:
First youtuber that lost his sponsorships, instead of pulling this video:
Or that time, when they…
I mean, you always hear those stories, about sociologists being killed, because some authoritarian countries bureaucracy fucked up, and now there is one positively crazy person less in existence, haha funny joke, we all laughed -- but to actually hear that from the person after being driven out of russia, and it including 12 FSB officers and the towns fucking english teacher!?!?
Wowzers.
So the stories about the graduation classes of an entire year of FSB graduates photographing themselves for social media, and getting open source identification matched to the local police stations they are working at now are true then! I mean, maybe someone could teach them why religious freedoms are a thing (people getting really emotional about dumb stuff like this), like they do in officer training in the rest of the world, and maybe even, that when you are dealing with a social media multiplicator “having videos of run down rural villages in russia floating around not being the worst thing that possibly could happen”.
Essentially, in one sentence, this was like telling the entire diplomatic community in the world, that the FSB is still a place, where massive fuckups happen routinely.
And China is not.
A communications science marvel.
Should be taughed in every masters level curriculum in every communications school from now on, as a how not to handle this situation.
Hmm, that Ukrainian people dont want to live under russian occupation, gained so much emotional believability after watching that! And yes, I kind of know the ratio of people that would actually care, and people that would rather ignore most things political and go on with their lives, so rationally I shouldnt -- but because of this HUMONGOUS FSB FUCKUP, I strangely do. And will probably remember that, as a fuckup, for the entire rest of my life…
When you thought autocratic regimes had figured out how to control populations, an FSB officer didnt want to have made a two hour trip in vein and badly wanted a promotion…
Can’t make this shit up.
In post soviet russia, state arrests and detains you for two weeks for - ehm, ehm, ehm, -- word invasion in a youtube video description, when you hold an american passport?
Non contextualized? Because OFFICER COULDNT SPEAK GOOD ENOUGH ENGLISH.
And fax machine to ask headoffice in Moscow cost too much, dont take away his promotion opportunity of a lifetime! It could be a spy! Quick - lets all take photo!
The official chinese ministery of invitations to tea parties must have pissed themselves laughing…
