The pro-Kremlin English-language television network Russia Today (RT) celebrated its 10th anniversary on air with a spoof video poking fun at U.S. President Barack Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry.
The 80-second video, shot in English with Russian subtitles, is set in 2035 and features actors playing Obama and Kerry as cranky retirees sharing a drink on the porch and griping about the fact that “nobody is afraid of us anymore.”
When Obama heads into his kitchen, RT is running on the television, featuring “breaking news” from “U.S. President Edward Snowden.” Obama and Kerry dismiss the network as a “damn propaganda bullhorn.”
The video closes with the tagline: “by this time we’ll be 30 years on air.”
RT, which is funded by the Russian government, launched in 2005. It has been widely criticized by Western governments and media as a mouthpiece for the policies of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Earlier this year, the network aired the documentary Terminal F/Chasing Edward Snowden, directed by Poul-Erik Heilbuth and John Goetz.
RT was hard hit earlier this year by budget cuts and the devaluation of the national currency, the ruble. As a result, RT had to cancel some of its expansion plans.
