Why are Kansas City’s airwaves filled with pro-Putin ‘Radio Sputnik’ propaganda?

“You’re listening to Radio Sputnik,’‘ the polished, made-for-radio voice says, accompanied by triumphant Russian-themed music. “Telling the untold.”

“Live from the divided states of America,” announces the host of “Fault Lines Radio” show. Produced in Washington, D.C., the program airs locally on AM radio station KCXL. Yes, we’re talking about a radio station spouting Russian propaganda from the heartland — just outside Kansas City. And why, you might ask, are Russian talking points airing on area radio stations?

Money talks. Or maybe we should say rubles.

Radio Sputnik, a media service funded by the Kremlin, airs daily on three stations in Kansas City. Alpine Broadcasting Corp. owner Peter Schartel is paid by Russian interests to broadcast pro-Vladimir Putin programming on them all.

And this week, with Russian tanks, artillery and troops continuing the tragic and reckless invasion of neighboring Ukraine, the Russian apologists spun hard. Schartel remained defiant even after multiple reports Thursday that the American branch of RT, the Russian-funded media network, was shutting down and laying off its staff. He said his contract was with an American company that works with the Russian authorities behind Sputnik. That company “has not notified us of any interruption,” he said.

For now, at least, the show goes on, and we sampled its absurd pro-Russian arguments so you wouldn’t have to.

Guests on the “Fault Lines Radio” show this week, encouraged by hosts Jamarl Thomas and Faran Fronczak, would have you believe Putin was an unwilling participant in this conflict. The Western media, one guest said, is complicit in spreading Ukrainian government war propaganda, and added that the besieged Ukrainian government is winning the information war on social media.

“If you were reading that, you might think there has been a billion Russian troops killed and that Ukrainian freedom fighters are storming Moscow,” said Mark Sleboda, Putin’s Moscow-based mouthpiece and frequent contributor to pro-Russian media companies.

Thomas predictably agreed, and the Putin praise continued.

KCXL has no ties to Russia and is against the country’s conflict with Ukraine, Schartel told us Wednesday. But he needs the money, and he’d lose his business if he pulled the plug on Radio Sputnik. So, that’s how you end up with a radio show here in the land of barbecue and jazz playing Cold War oldies and coddling a powerful, seemingly deranged dictator.

Putin ordered the invasion of neighboring Ukraine. The unprovoked and inhumane attack has caused thousands of deaths of both civilians and soldiers in Ukraine. Parts of the country are being reduced to rubble.

Outside of Moscow, the Russian invasion has been almost universally condemned. Except for right here in the Kansas City area, where listeners of KCXL were bombarded with pro-Putin talk.

Indicted Jan. 6 Capitol rioter Jayden X a guest

Here’s another pro-Moscow take from Sleboda meant to counter the narrative that the Russian Army was struggling in Ukraine: Putin’s measured approach to the conflict with Ukraine is being ignored, Sleboda said. The Russians have vast weaponry at their disposal. The world has yet to see the Russian military’s full arsenal. The Russian president was concerned about the lives of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers so the Russians “have not been using their heavy artillery.”

Yep. If you believe Putin’s man in Moscow, the Russians are bending over backwards to play nice.

Try spinning that lie to the families of those already killed defending their country from invaders. Or the 1 million people forced to flee Ukraine with children in tow to avoid the violence of the past week.

Another sketchy “Fault Lines Radio” guest was political activist, video journalist and indicted Jan. 6 Washington D.C. rioter John Sullivan, aka Jayden X. He told the hosts he was worried “both sides” of the conflict weren’t being presented. No one believes the Ukrainian government is spreading images and videos taken before Russia’s military operations began, as Putin supporters contend. Please. You can’t argue with a straight face that Russia is on the right side of history in this one.

Much like the National Association of Broadcasters, we advise KCXL to drop all programming that paints Putin in a positive light. The Russian president is no victim; he is for sure no war hero.

If Schartel had ethics, the show’s run would end here. It’d be no surprise if it doesn’t. KCXL was a standard-issue, right-wing propaganda station before it became Putin’s Midwest hub. But apparently, rah-rah Moscow agitprop paid better.

A lucrative, multi-year six-figure deal with foreign nationals may be in the best interest of Schartel’s brand. But supporting Radio Sputnik, especially during a time of war in Europe, is unpatriotic, if not un-American.

Free speech is worth sacrificing for, Schartel said. Humble stations such as his face a multitude of challenges just to stay afloat. OK, but the solution isn’t to broadcast Russian propaganda over the airwaves in Kansas City.

This story was originally published March 4, 2022 at 5:00 AM.