Dmitry Zhuk
MINSK, 9 April (BelTA) – Newly appointed Information Minister Dmitry Zhuk revealed whether YouTube might be blocked in Belarus following the removal of the channels of major Belarusian media outlets, BelTA has learned.
“Any decision, especially one such as a ban, must be thoroughly considered. Its consequences must be carefully evaluated. It must be justified and effective. If we declare something but cannot implement it, then it is better not to declare it at all,” Dmitry Zhuk said. “As for platforms used by Belarusian citizens, we must act very carefully. You know the president’s position: he is not a supporter of bans. We need to look for other mechanisms for interacting with these major players in the global media space.”
According to the new head of the Information Ministry, the head of state, when appointing him, drew attention to the fact that an information war is currently underway. “It is being waged very harshly, without rules. A recent example is the removal of three channels of our leading media outlets from YouTube. One of our tasks is to prevent this information war from turning into a hot one. Let it remain in the information sphere. We will have to fight on foreign platforms: on YouTube, on Instagram,” Dmitry Zhuk said.
The minister stressed that journalists are the most important element in this work, as they are, in a sense, the soldiers of this information war. “The environment in which their efforts are applied is a matter of technology, and we do not know what challenges we will face tomorrow. But we must clearly understand that these are ideologically grounded, competent professionals who are capable of mastering any technological format of work. This is the most important task ahead in the information sphere,” he emphasized.
Another important task, Dmitry Zhuk noted, is protecting the Belarusian information space from the intrusion of negative trends that are alien to the moral values of Belarusians.
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