Belarusian state media cite a Polish pseudo-news site. Why that does not make the story reliable

Publication date: 2026-06-08

Claim

When Belarusian state media cite the Polish-language site Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny, this looks like independent confirmation from Poland.

Verdict

Misleading. A Polish-language source does not make the material reliable by itself. FactCheck LT, TrueStory, Stanford Internet Observatory and other researchers have described Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny as a source or channel of pro-Russian and anti-Western disinformation, linked to fake authors, copied texts and suspicious influence campaigns.

In brief

• Belarusian state media and toxic Telegram channels have spread stories that cite Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny.

• FactCheck LT says a reference to this site should be treated as a warning sign of unreliable information.

• TrueStory describes the site as a mixture of copied content and Kremlin-aligned propaganda written in poor Polish.

• VSquare and Stanford Internet Observatory materials have linked NDP to campaigns using forged documents, fake personas and anti-NATO narratives.

• This means that such a citation is not independent Polish confirmation. It can be a form of information laundering: a disputed claim is placed on an external-looking site and then brought back into Belarusian or Russian-language media as if it were outside evidence.

Why this matters

For Russian-speaking and Belarusian-speaking audiences, a citation to a foreign-language site can look like external verification. In reality, the citation can hide a source with a poor reputation, unverifiable authors and politically motivated content. This matters for stories about Poland, Ukraine, NATO, the Belarusian opposition and Belarusians in the EU, where disinformation often tries to divide neighbouring societies and weaken trust in independent media.

What we checked

We checked how researchers describe Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny, how Belarusian media used references to it and which risk signs have already been documented. We do not claim that every single text on the site is false. We check a narrower point: whether a citation to NDP can be treated as reliable independent confirmation.

Evidence

1. FactCheck LT gives a direct warning about NDP

FactCheck LT examined cases in which Belarusian state-controlled media published materials referring to Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny. The analysis says that such references should be treated as a warning sign of unreliable information or disinformation.

In one example, Belarusian media spread a story about Valery Tsepkalo and claims about Polish taxpayer spending. FactCheck LT linked that wave to an NDP article signed by the name Hanna Kramer. Researchers noted that open information about a journalist with that name is almost absent outside NDP itself and materials warning about Russian propaganda.

2. Polish investigators described the site as pseudo-media

TrueStory described Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny not as an ordinary independent outlet, but as an aggregator where copied material is mixed with anti-US, anti-Ukrainian and pro-Russian texts. The article also highlighted poor Polish, Russian-style wording and strange grammar.

TrueStory wrote that the alleged authors and editorial staff of NDP do not look verifiable. That matters because an independent outlet should have clear editorial accountability, not only a credible-sounding name.

3. NDP appears in descriptions of wider influence operations

VSquare published a piece based on work by Stanford Internet Observatory about the Polish information space. It described NDP as a small pro-Russian Polish-language outlet linked to fake personas, reused content and anti-NATO narratives.

The same context included a forged letter attributed to a Polish military official. This type of case shows the mechanism: a supposedly local item is planted or created, then spread through a network of sites and accounts, and later used as an external citation in other countries.

4. The pattern resembles information laundering

Information laundering works like this: a claim that serves one side is published on an external or pseudo-independent outlet, then state media or Telegram channels cite that outlet, and the audience is shown the citation as independent confirmation.

In the NDP case, the problem is not that the site is Polish-language. The problem is that several independent researchers have already described it as an unreliable channel with signs of disinformation activity.

What remains unknown

Open sources do not provide full technical attribution for every NDP article or everyone involved in producing it. Also, each individual text on the site still requires separate verification before it can be called false. But the source-risk assessment is already strong: opaque editorial structure, questionable authors, copied content, repeated pro-Russian narratives and a record of use in influence campaigns.

Conclusion

A citation to Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny should not be treated as reliable Polish confirmation. When Belarusian state media or Telegram channels use this source, readers should check the original fact against primary documents, official statements and independent media with transparent editorial responsibility.

Sources

• FactCheck LT: Belarusian state-controlled media publishes materials from a regular source of disinformation. https://factcheck.lt/eng/news/belarusian-state-controlled-media-publishes-materials-from-a-regular-source-of-disinformation

• TrueStory: Niezależny Dziennik Polityczny. Tępy młot rosyjskiej propagandy. https://truestory.pl/niezalezny-dziennik-polityczny-tepy-mlot-rosyjskiej-propagandy

• VSquare: Russia-related accounts and a cyberattack in Poland. https://vsquare.org/russia-related-accounts-and-a-cyberattack-in-poland

• Illiberalism Studies Program: DeZinformacja: Longstanding Polish-Language Influence Campaign Shows Its True Russian Colors. https://www.illiberalism.org/dezinformacja-longstanding-polish-language-influence-campaign-shows-its-true-russian-colors

• EDMO and Belarusian Investigative Center: Life in the EU is a nightmare, according to Belarus disinformation. https://edmo.eu/publications/life-in-the-eu-is-a-nightmare-according-to-belarus-disinformation

Corrections and updates

There are no corrections at the time of publication. If new documents appear about NDP ownership, editorial structure or technical attribution, we will update this article.