Russia Wants to Exempt State Media From ‘Foreign Agent’ Scrutiny May 25, 2021 Moskva News Agency The Russian government wants to exempt state media from financial scrutiny to avoid being labeled “foreign agents” because they are not prone to foreign influence. The proposal comes after Russia labeled the independent news sites Meduza and VTimes “foreign agents,” jeopardizing their futures by discouraging advertisers and levying steep fines for auditing violations. news Russia’s Ministry of Digital Development, Communications and Mass Media submitted a draft bill for discussion Monday requiring only commercial, and not state media, to be subjected to financial audits. “Attempts to influence Russian information space from the outside with the aim of biased informing and creating a distorted picture of political reality can only take place in relation to commercial media,” it said.