On Friday, a group of children dressed in red took to the stage on Field of Wonders, a game show which has been broadcast on Russian television since late Soviet times.“We don’t want it, we don’t want it,” the children sang cheerfully.“We don’t sit, we don’t sit on your internet.”The song finished optimistically, suggesting that instead of doomscrolling, “it’s much more fun to meet your friends nearby!”While it might well be good for youngsters to play outside every once in a while, given the ongoing war with Ukraine, the song was perhaps also aimed at older viewers.While internet outages have been happening periodically over the past year in the border regions, where fighting has spilled over from Ukraine, this month, major cities such as Moscow and Saint Petersburg have experienced blackouts as well.Observers say signs point to the Kremlin tightening its grip on cyberspace.The outages only seem to affect mobile data, leaving Wi-Fi functional, and parts of the capital, especially the outskirts, have been spared the shutdown. But going offline has disrupted everyday life. People say it has become impossible to message friends or colleagues on the go, or to check your phone for directions.“We practically have no mobile internet now,” Diana, a St Petersburg teacher in her mid-30s, told Al Jazeera.“That means you can’t use maps, apps, or anything. And in Mos …
