For years, the Kremlin tried to ignore opposition leader Alexei Navalny, right down to avoiding the very mention of his name.
But by Sunday, Russian officials had drastically reversed course.
President Vladimir Putin’s spokesperson appeared on a prime-time show on state television and denied Navalny’s assertion that Putin had a secret palace on the Black Sea. On another marquee program, the host devoted 40 minutes to Navalny, who was described as engaging in "political pedophilia.” And the evening newscast showed tweets by Western officials in support of Navalny as proof that he was working against Russian interests.