Right-wing influencers say they were dupes in an alleged Russian influence operation. They’re keeping their millions, for now

By CNN Newsource

Published September 13, 2024 4:15 AM

By Jon Passantino and Sean Lyngaas, CNN

(CNN) — Where did the money go?

The right-wing social media stars who were allegedly paid millions of dollars in a nefarious Russian influence operation to shape public opinion around the 2024 US presidential election are remaining mum.

Last week, the Justice Department alleged that Russian state media producers funneled nearly $10 million to an unnamed Tennessee-based company, later determined by CNN to be Tenet Media, to create and amplify content that often featured narratives and themes supported by the Kremlin. Tenet Media boasts a slate of high-profile right-wing, pro-Trump commentators including Tim Pool, Dave Rubin, Benny Johnson and several others.

While the indictment doesn’t directly name or accuse the influencers of wrongdoing, or state that they knew at the time that the money was part of a Russian influence operation, it alleged two employees of RT, the Russian state media propaganda outlet, paid nearly $10 million to hire the “talent” and create social media videos promoting its agenda. All of the figures have said they did not know the funds originated with the Kremlin and had no idea they were being employed for the purpose of amplifying pro-Russia narratives. The influencers all say they are “victims,” and that the FBI has contacted them for voluntary interviews.

In the wake of the stunning accusation, CNN asked representatives for Pool, Rubin and Johnson whether they would turn over or donate the money they were paid. None of them have publicly detailed the payments they allegedly received as part of the foreign campaign or responded to CNN requests on the matter.

Based on the information revealed in the case so far, the influencers are not obligated to forfeit the money, said Brandon Van Grack, a lead prosecutor in Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russia’s 2016 election influence.

In an interview following the indictment, Pool insisted the amount he was paid — $100,000 per video — was “around market value for offers we had already received,” and described it as “inconsequential” to his lifestyle.

“We’ve actually never done anything with it,” he told conservative host Ben Shapiro. “I would say the overwhelming majority of the money has just not gone anywhere.”

While Pool noted he had been urged by social media users to give the money back, he said he was consulting with his legal team on the case.

But the secret payments lay bare how susceptible the new media ecosystem is to infiltration, where independent creators operate with few guardrails and little transparency. And while the personalities hired by Tenet regularly attack the traditional news media, the payments reveal the figures’ lack of accountability and integrity befitted to traditional journalistic outlets.

According to the indictment, some of the creators were told the project was being bankrolled by a man named Eduard Grigoriann. “In truth and fact,” the indictment reads, “Grigoriann was a fictional persona.”

Federal prosecutors outlined in a court filing how one of the social media stars, believed to be Rubin, was approached by a Tenet co-founder with an offer of $2 million a year to make videos for the company. One of the founders later wrote, “It would need to be closer to 5 million yearly for him to be interested,” according to the indictment.

Rubin expressed some skepticism about who was funding the deal and asked for more information about Grigoriann. The Tenet co-founder then wrote to the Russian state media staffers, stressing that the personality was “really insisting on seeing some materials (profile, article, whatever) on Eduard before (he) feels comfortable moving forward. Is there anything we can provide (Rubin) with?”

Rubin was then provided with a fake resume showing Grigoriann, portraying him as a wealthy Brussels-born “accomplished finance professional” The host took issue with Grigoriann describing himself as an advocate for “social justice,” but eventually agreed on a contract of a $400,000 monthly fee to create “four weekly videos,” along with a $100,000 signing bonus, the indictment said.

While Rubin appeared to be unaware of the origins of the funds, the Justice Department said Tenet’s founders, the right-wing personality Lauren Chen and her husband, Liam Donovan, knew Grigoriann was a fake. Neither Chen nor Donovan are named in the indictment.

A private message between Chen and Donovan in May 2021 read, “So we’re billing the Russians from the corporation, right?” Two weeks later, another message said, “Also, the Russians paid. So we’re good to bill them for the next month I guess,” the legal filing details.

Two Russian state media employees, Kostiantyn Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, were charged by the Justice Department with money laundering and violating the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Chen and Donovan have not been charged. CNN has not been able to reach the couple.

Rubin later said he was a victim of the elaborate scheme, posting on social media: “These allegations clearly show that I and other commentators were the victims of this scheme. I knew absolutely nothing about any of this fraudulent activity. Period.”

The Justice Department’s investigation into the covert Russian influence operation — and the Tenet Media founders themselves — could be ongoing, Van Grack told CNN, but suggested prosecutors unsealed the indictment this month to try to blunt the impact of the Russian propaganda on the November election.

The US government was in many ways “caught flat-footed” in 2016 by the covert Russian influence campaign, and US officials are intent on not making the same mistake this year, he said.

CNN’s Hadas Gold contributed reporting.