Yakutia ditches Telegram for state-backed Max platform in major shift
Politics
YAKUTIA.INFO. Government agencies in Yakutia have begun an active shift to the official Max platform. A directive to this effect has been issued to all ministries, departments, and state organizations, with officials actively subscribing to the accounts of the republic's head and the Agency for Government Information and Public Relations (AGIP).
Observers also note a rapid surge in subscribers to Yakutia's head Aisen Nikolayev's Max channel: yesterday, it had 5,000 followers—today, the number has already climbed to 7,000. Recall that during the month-long blockade of the banned WhatsApp, government bodies migrated their work chats to Max. This flurry of activity suggests that Telegram may face the same fate as the "banned-gram" exodus that began back in 2022.
Whether this strategy will prove effective remains to be seen. Meanwhile, some government employees view the initiative with skepticism.
"I don't like this idea because, in the end, the state apparatus loses its presence—and thus its influence—in the media space. Plus, the 'gray internet' zone, where the government has no footprint, keeps expanding. Unless VPNs are mass-blocked or Cheburnet [Russia's sovereign internet] is fully enforced, this whole push is pointless. The government will just trap itself in VK and Max, while the rest of the digital space turns into a free-for-all," a source from one of the agencies told Yakutia.Info.
At the same time, Yakutia.Info has learned that proposals are under consideration for a complete withdrawal of the public sector from Telegram.
*Owned by Meta, which is designated as an extremist organization and banned in Russia.
Tags: - Aisen Nikolayev - Telegram - Max - public sector
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