Russia’s latest propaganda tools are celebrity Cameos

Cameo, the app that lets you pay celebrities to make videos—which Rudy Giuliani once graced with a video of himself reciting “I’m a Little Teapot”—has recently been used for even more sinister purposes.

Since July, an unknown Russian group has been buying and doctoring Cameos from celebrities including Mike Tyson, Elijah Wood, and at least five others, Microsoft’s Threat Analysis Center discovered. Apparently unbeknownst to the celebs, their customized messages were manipulated to appear to endorse the Kremlin-peddled false claim that Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky suffers from drug and alcohol abuse.

How’d this happen? The targeted celebs were paid to encourage someone named Vladimir (which is how Zelensky’s name tends to be spelled in Russia) to seek treatment. “Hi, Vladimir, Elijah here,” Wood said in his Cameo. “I hope you can get the help you need.”

The videos—some edited to look like the celebs had posted them on their Instagram feeds—have spread throughout Russian media, from massive state news organizations to popular social platforms.

In the limelight: Cameo already made headlines this week for its hottest new creator, expelled congressman George Santos. The downed diva/alleged fraudster has been churning out $400 videos and already received enough requests to top his congressional salary.—ML