“Tracks” goes east, becomes “Tracks East”. For ten weeks starting June 7th, the pop culture Arte magazine will take a new look at Eastern Europe from the East, as announced at a press conference on Thursday. Journalists, cultural workers and influencers from Ukraine, Russia and the Baltic States will report on their actions and activities.

According to the opening sequence, the core is about propaganda and counter-propaganda in times of war. Propaganda, that’s what Russian state television does day and night. In “Tracks East”, former television journalists from stations loyal to the party line give an insight into the mechanisms of this opinion machine.

Always against the background that quite a few Russians did not believe the statements made by their government in the past, but have now, since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, become more or less “believing”. Why? A startling response in the post: “Because they want to believe it.”

The article also brings those Russians in front of the camera who have not switched to the “Putinist” camp. Some have made this attitude a vocation, if not a profession. For example, Paulius Senuta, founder of the “Call Russia” initiative and operator of an advertising agency in Lithuania, picks up the phone in a very old-fashioned way and tries to enlighten people in Russia – with very mixed reactions.

The fight for the truth often takes place online. Ukrainian influencers like Jerry Heil use their reach to publicize war atrocities and motivate Ukrainians to persevere – and in this way become “warfluencers”.

Pussy Riot, on the other hand, never stayed true to the line. Now, after Maria Alekhina’s spectacular escape from Russia, they’re raising their voices again and have big plans. She met “Tracks” in Berlin.

The exiled Russian journalist Masha Borzunova, anchorwoman of the Doschd broadcaster, which has since been smashed by the Russian government, deciphers the Russian state propaganda in the program “Fakenews”. “Fakenews” will be distributed weekly from June 9th on the Tracks YouTube channel.