Who is Olga Skabeyeva? How Putin's 'Iron Doll' became the herald for World War 3
A Russian propagandist, who has drawn the attention of Western media, has been given nicknames such as 'propagandist-in-chief', Russian state TV's 'special operation forces' and the 'iron doll of Putin TV'. Olga Skabeyeva's pro-Kremlin rants had drawn attention even before the war. After the Russian troops invaded Ukraine, however, the rants have only intensified.
Skabeyeva teamed up with her husband Yevgeny Popov and spread various conspiracy theories. She has been heard overstating Moscow's war successes and issued warnings of a "World War Three" combined with threats against the West. Her on-air conduct on TV has prompted commentators to brand her a "monster".
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Skabeyeva, in her most recent appearance, joined other Putin propagandists on Russia1's 'Evening Vladimir Solovyov'. She expressed her pleasure over the death sentences handed to two Britons fighting in Ukraine. The panel laughed at the thought of the two being shot and accused the British government of doing "nothing" to help him.
Who is Olga Skabeyeva?
The 37-year-old mother was born in Volzhsky, Volgograd Oblast, Soviet Union, where she graduated from high school. She studied at the Faculty of Journalism at Saint Petersburg State University and her career in journalism began at a local newspaper. Skabeyeva rose to prominence in 2012–2013 due to her coverage of the Pussy Riot trial. An investigation by an Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), published last year, found that Skabeyeva and her husband own real estate in Moscow with a total value of over 300 million rubles ($4 million). She is a two-time winner of the Russian television TEFI Award and received the distinction in 2017 and 2018.
After the Russia-Ukraine war began, she called the invasion an effort "to protect people in Donbas from a Nazi regime". She also claimed that it was "without exaggeration, a crucial junction in history." Speaking of the sinking of Russian cruiser Moskva by the Ukrainian forces, Skabeyeva said in April that "One can safely call what it has escalated into World War III". Skabeyeva's critical reports prompted Irina Petrovskaya to refer to her as a member of Russian state TV's "special operation forces," describing Skabeyeva's tone as "prosecutorial and accusatory". Additonally, a blogger known only as 'Interviewer' named her the "iron doll of Putin's TV". The blogger also described her as having "metal in her eyes and iron in her voice", and said she "exposes all the wretchedness of the March against scoundrels and the vile self-interest of its organizers."
Among many of her controversial coverages, one of her homophobic report about gay marriage in the UK and France was unsettling. She falsely claimed that 40 percent of children in the country raised by same-sex parents "have venereal diseases". Her TV show '60 Minutes', which she has hosted with her husband since 2016, once claimed that Malaysian Airlines flight MH17, which was reportedly destroyed by a Buk surface-to-air missile launched from pro-Russian separatist-controlled territory in Ukraine, was actually destroyed by a Ukrainian jet. The show also falsely claimed that genocide has been carried out in Ukraine's eastern Donbas region against Russian speakers.
According to The Insider, Skabeyeva is said to earn 12.8 million roubles ($ 2,25,054.98) per year. Her husband reportedly earns 12.9 million roubles ($2,26,813.22). Their only reported source of income is from a state-owned Russian media company, besides its Russia1 subsidiary.