"Fake CNN Site (With Obscenities) Puzzles CNN"
U.S. broadcaster CNN expressed bewilderment Tuesday over the appearance of a web site bearing its iconic red logo and poorly translated articles in Russian.
The web site, Cnnrussia.ru, is attracting thousands of visitors a day and sponsors Facebook, Twitter and LiveJournal communities as well.
CNN Moscow bureau chief Maxim Tkachenko said the broadcaster does not have a Russian-language web site.
Claudia Coles, a London-based spokeswoman for CNN, said the broadcaster was looking into the matter. “I can confirm this is not a CNN site. We are evaluating next steps,” Coles said by e-mail.
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The purpose of the web site was unclear. Cybersquatters have been known to take over the domain names of companies, state agencies and celebrities. U.S. camera maker Eastman Kodak won a costly, two-year legal battle for the rights to Kodak.ru in 1999, while Forbes magazine won a similar lawsuit over Forbes.ru last year.
It appears some ads come from Google and some images are hosted on Flickr.
Update: The CNNRussia.ru web site was still live on Sunday, May 29, 2011.
Here are a few static screenshots captured at that time.
Homepage | CNNRussia Twitter Stream | Africa Section
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About Gary Price
Gary Price (gprice@gmail.com) is a librarian, writer, consultant, and frequent conference speaker based in the Washington D.C. metro area. He earned his MLIS degree from Wayne State University in Detroit. Price has won several awards including the SLA Innovations in Technology Award and Alumnus of the Year from the Wayne St. University Library and Information Science Program. From 2006-2009 he was Director of Online Information Services at Ask.com.