Russia’s influence over the media sector in Central and East Europe and its effect on democratic governance in these countries has become a growing concern. To address these issues, the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) has engaged in analyzing the Russian economic footprint and ownership links in the media sector in the Black Sea region. The preliminary results provide an overview of the tools used by Russian-controlled media for disseminating content and political messages. The current brief summarizes the main conclusions from the discussion on the topic, held on 22 February 2018.