Gagging order
Russia's authorities like to throw their weight around. One of the ways that they do this, on the internet, is by demanding the removal of social media content that they deem to be illegal. Their definition of illegal, though, extends to content that is simply critical of them, or supportive of the opposition. Who could've possibly guessed? (thinking)
The BBC presents a handy-dandy, a-picture-paints-a-thousand-words motion graphic that shows the growth of Russia's bitchin' at Google/YouTube over time; although it's perhaps more fanciful than it first appears. While the numbers and the growth curve appear to increase continuously along the timeline, the data are based on half-yearly reports. So, the intermediate data are presumably interpolated. Still, it looks whizzy enough.
The data date from 30.06.2011, but Russia only entered the top 15 during the 31.12.2012 reporting period. Despite coming in late to the game, those Russkies made impressive strides, taking the top spot by 30.06.2016, and far outstripping their competition from then on. Currently, Russia leads second-placed Turkey almost 10:1, and owns 64% of the top 15's total score.
Nonetheless, I was most impressed with Turkey's performance earlier on. Even now, the Turks are still punching above their weight. (nod)
In comparison, Belgium proved its boringness credentials by making only a brief appearance before dropping out in 2012, never to be seen again. Typical! (rolleyes)