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British MPs demand Russian cartoon 'Masha and the Bear' be taken off air
More than 50 MPs in the UK have written to the government calling for the Russian cartoon 'Masha and the Bear' to be taken off air, arguing it could expose children to Russian propaganda. The production company Animaccord firmly denied the accusations, while Russian officials dismissed the claims as exaggerated.
Many MPs in the United Kingdom have called on the government to take action to stop the broadcast of the popular Russian cartoon "Masha and the Bear".
More than 50 MPs from the Conservative Party, Labour Party, Liberal Democrats, Greens, Scottish National Party and Plaid Cymru wrote a joint letter to Culture Minister Lisa Nandy, suggesting that the animation broadcast on platforms such as Netflix and ITVX could contain "indirect propaganda".
Based on a Russian folk tale, the series is among the most-watched children's content on YouTube; one episode has been viewed more than 4.6 billion times. However, the production has previously been criticized by Ukrainian and Estonian officials, who described it as "Russian soft power".
In their letter, the MPs drew attention to scenes in which the character Masha wears Soviet military symbols, arguing that such images are used to normalize imagery from the history and security apparatus of the former Soviet Union, and that this is inappropriate for children.
The MPs also argued that content reaching millions of children via global and British broadcast platforms is not sufficiently scrutinized, and stressed the need to tighten oversight of content aimed at young age groups.
Meanwhile, the series' producer Animaccord firmly denied the accusations. In a statement, the company said that "Masha and the Bear" is a purely entertainment children's production, carries no political message, deals with universal themes such as friendship and imagination, and has no state funding or connections.
Russian officials said the accusations against the series were "exaggerated and mocking".
While the UK Culture Ministry and broadcast regulators have yet to issue a decision, the series continues to be broadcast on various platforms in the United Kingdom.
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