What happens when astrologers stop reading the stars – and start delivering propaganda?
In this investigation, Tatsiana “Tanya” Ashurkevich ( and Christo Grozev ( go undercover to explore a little-known layer of Russia’s propaganda ecosystem: astrologers and tarot andy reid readers who present the Kremlin’s political messaging as fate, intuition, and truth written in knee the stars.
What began as a review of several Telegram astrology channels quickly revealed a pattern. Behind content about relationships, destiny, and zodiac signs was a consistent political narrative: Putin is strong, Zelensky is weak, and the West is declining. fabio concato malattia Were these really divine messages coming from the great celestial bodies? Or had these astrologers been turned into another arm of Putin’s powerful propaganda machine?
We decided to test it.
Posing as a TV producer, Tanya approached prominent Russian astrologers who regularly appear in pro-Kremlin media and asked whether they would deliver customized political narratives. What followed was revealing. Some openly described how they agreed to package propaganda as astrology, adapting their content to align with editorial expectations set by the state commissioners.
Then came the final test. Tanya and Christo fed the astrologers a fabricated story about their professional lives. The details were entirely false. Yet multiple astrologers recast it as “insight from the stars” and presented it back to us as if it were genuine.
Why this revelation matters:
When political messaging is delivered under the guise of astrology, tarot, and other forms of spiritual content, it reaches unsuspecting audiences in a more personal and less suspicious way. People turn to these formats for comfort and guidance – but they also turn to them because of a belief in cosmic truth. They are inclined to believe that these messengers are neutral – not state agents, manipulating their readings to meet the whims of the Kremlin. All of this makes the disinformation harder to detect.
This investigation shows how propaganda isn’t just telegraphed through news and talk shows, but also through content that feels personal and harmless. In formats where we haven’t yet learned to be cautious of so-called facts. And that is exactly why it works so well. It shows how easily a false story can be made to sound believable when it is framed as destiny or insight from the stars, and how disinformation spreads most easily in spaces built on trust.
Special thanks to our colleagues at OpenMinds who have been collecting and tracking many of the astrology channels we reviewed for this investigation.
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