scholarly journals Prisoners of the Media: Television in Russia Since the Collapse of Communism

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey Brassard
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Power Relations ◽  
Russian Society ◽  
Mikhail Gorbachev ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Russian Media ◽  
The Media ◽  
Collapse Of Communism ◽  
Special Case

In 1991 one of the most oppressive regimes in history collapsed and millions of people were set free. Following the implementation of glasnost and perestroika Soviet communism proved untenable and was consigned to the trash heap of history. The Soviet media itself played a tremendous role in facilitating the collapse. After Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev removed censorship from the Soviet press they began looking into the past transgressions of their nation and reported it aggressively. Thus, as the Soviet state and its Russian successor became a much weaker power agent, other agents of power appeared to challenge the power of the state with regards to the media. Television, as the most important medium in Russian society came to be a special case. The power relations in Russian television are essentially a historical map of power relations since the collapse of the Soviet Union. Power in Russian media is made up of a complex set of relationships that is worth exploring.

The Collapse of East European Communism and the Repercussions within the Soviet Union (Part 1)

2003 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 178-256 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Kramer
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Political Elite ◽  
Eastern Bloc ◽  
Mikhail Gorbachev ◽  
Coup D'etat ◽  
East European ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Soviet Foreign Policy ◽  
Collapse Of Communism

The largely peaceful collapse of Communism in Eastern Europe in 1989 reflected the profound changes that Mikhail Gorbachev had carried out in Soviet foreign policy. Successful though the process was in Eastern Europe, it had destabilizing repercussions within the Soviet Union. The effects were both direct and indirect. The first part of this two-part article looks at Gorbachev's policy toward Eastern Europe, the collapse of Communism in the region, and the direct “spillover” from Eastern Europe into the Soviet Union. The second part of the article, to be published in the next issue of the journal, discusses the indirect spillover into the Soviet Union and the fierce debate that emerged within the Soviet political elite about the “loss” of the Eastern bloc—a debate that helped spur the leaders of the attempted hardline coup d'état in August 1991.

Assessing Human Rights in Russia: Not to Miss the Forest for the Trees A Response to Preclik, Schönfeld and Hallinan

2012 ◽  
Vol 37 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 349-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vladislav Starzhenetskii
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Transition Period ◽  
Russian Society ◽  
Human Rights Protection ◽  
Rights Protection ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Implementation Of Standards

AbstractLooking fourteen years into the past, Russia has made enormous progress in reforming its legal system in order to ensure human-rights protection under the Convention. This process of reform is still ongoing. The causes of the existing difficulties in the area of human-rights protection are better explained in terms of difficulties with implementation of standards in the Russian legal system rather than any antagonism between Russian and European human-rights attitudes. There are several groups of violations of the ECHR that need to be analyzed separately because of the different nature of the problems. Some of them reflect structural and practical problems of the Russian legal system immanent in a transition period of reforms and of the dismantling of old regulations and attitudes; others may be accounted for by the lack of proper (efficient, adequate and balanced) measures and solutions to address the numerous new challenges that Russian society is facing after the collapse of the Soviet Union. There are many examples that provide evidence that Russia is trying to amend its legal and political system to meet the requirements of the Convention.

Part I: Morning Session The View from Above

1990 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 5-6
Author(s):  
Alexander Motyl
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Soviet Union ◽  
Eastern Europe ◽  
Morning Session ◽  
The Past ◽  
Soviet Empire ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Time To Build ◽  
Collapse Of Communism ◽  
One Year

When we met last year, the situation in the Soviet Union, although fluid, was still hopeful. One year later, things seem to have become immeasurably worse. Some will, perhaps, dispute this assessment and argue that the situation is even more hopeful than it was in the past. Such arguments remind me of socialists who think that now is the time to build socialism in Eastern Europe. Clearly, the situation in Armenia and Azerbaijan is out of control. I need not remind you of the Lithuanian “events,” to use that memorable Soviet term, the miners' strikes in mid-1989, and last, but not least, the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe, which is the decisive event of that year and, perhaps, of the second half of the twentieth century. Communism's demise obviously casts a totally different light on the nationality question in general and on the dynamics of the Soviet empire in particular.

On the Relationship between Law and Morality

2020 ◽  
pp. 87-92
Author(s):  
T. N. Pidlasko
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Russian Society ◽  
The Past ◽  
Political Transformations ◽  
Spiritual World ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
The Russian Federation ◽  
Law And Morality ◽  
The One ◽  
The Relationship

The article touches on the topical issue of interaction between law and morality, caused by the fact that society is constantly developing, and this process is endless, therefore, the norms of law and morality are constantly changing in their development. This process is not easy and covers different sides. Any country is unique because it has its own specific features and uniqueness. The Russian Federation is particularly unique, because on the one hand, it is the largest in terms of area, population and territory, on the other hand, it is home to a large variety of ethnic groups. Our government has repeatedly experienced a total conversion, was confronted with a powerful crisis, not only political, but also economic. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia again experienced a crisis that affected the economy, politics, and the spiritual world of Russian society. Up to the present time Russia is trying to overcome this crisis, at the same time faced with new challenges. Political transformations, economic realities, and many other factors certainly have an impact on law and morals, because in the country, society, subjected to huge tests, regularly changes, changing its spirit and mentality. The past legislation is outdated, and the new one is still being formed, passing through a number of mistakes and entering into disagreement with the past foundations.

Emigracja zarobkowa z Ukrainy do Polski w propagandzie rosyjskiej po 2014 roku

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 293-315
Author(s):  
Andrzej Szabaciuk
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Public Discourse ◽  
The Public ◽  
Mass Migration ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Polish Language ◽  
Russian Media ◽  
The Media ◽  
And Migration

The aim of the article is to analyze the image of economic emigration from Ukraine to Poland created by pro-Kremlin media after 2014. It shows how Russian propaganda changed during the 20th century, what function it had from the tsarist period, through the years of the Soviet Union, to contemporary times. Its significance in the period after the decomposition of the union state was presented, and in particular the changes that it underwent since Vladimir Putin’s first presidency. There were shown ideological changes, which more or less influenced the public discourse, and thus also the media coverage. The functions of the Russian propaganda after the escalation of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict and the way of presenting mass labour migration from Ukraine to Poland are presented, both in the context of creating a specific narrative about the current internal and foreign situation of Ukraine after the Dignity Revolution, as well as against the background of Polish-Ukrainian relations and migration processes taking place in Poland. It was shown which aspects of mass migration were most often presented by pro-Kremlin information platforms, in which context and how a specific propaganda discourse was constructed. An important element is the analysis of changes observed in the message of the state-controlled Russian media concerning the mass migration of Ukrainians to Poland and the analysis of the origins, scale, significance and consequences of this migration. More extensive research leads to the conclusion that the media controlled by the Kremlin authorities can skilfully construct the message by adapting it to the addressee. In Polish language information services, the information addressed to the recipient is much more detailed and prepared in such a way as to build an aversion between the host society and Ukrainian economic immigrants. While preparing the article, we used the analysis of data found with elements of a comparative analysis.

scholarly journals “Nostalgia Not for the Past but Nostalgia for the Present”: Post-Soviet Youth on USSR’s Collapse

2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (5) ◽  
pp. 231-246
Author(s):  
M. A. Yadova
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Young People ◽  
Soviet Period ◽  
Russian Society ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Russian Media ◽  
Just Society ◽  
People’S Attitudes ◽  
Crimean Crisis ◽  
Post Soviet Period

. The article focuses on the perceptions of the generation of post-Soviet youth about the collapse of the USSR. An attempt to analyse the reasons for the favourable and “nostalgic” attitude to the USSR on the part of those who, due to their age, have no experience of Soviet life is made. It is shown that, according to mass surveys, attitudes towards the collapse of the USSR depend on the age of respondents: older generations predominantly perceive the collapse of the Soviet Union negatively, while among young people (especially in the youngest cohort of 18-24-year olds) the number of those who are not upset about the collapse of the USSR exceeds the number who regret it. The dynamics of public opinion on this event have been erratic in recent years, strongly influenced by the “Crimean effect”: during the Crimean crisis – 2014, the number of those regretting the collapse of the USSR rose sharply, but, years later, it has returned to its previous level. The data of the author’s study devoted to the problem of perception of post-Soviet transformations and the 90s in general by young Russians are given. The study conducted has shown that young people’s attitudes towards the post-Soviet period in Russian society are mainly based on clichés about the “wild” nineties that have been replicated in the Russian media. In their assessments, young people often rely on the views of parents (or other older relatives) and teachers. The mythology of young people’s perception of the events of December 1991 and their internal distance from the last decade of the XX century, as well as their poor knowledge of Soviet and post-Soviet realities of life are noted. The conclusion is drawn that some young people’s interest in the Soviet past stems from dreams of a prosperous and just society of equal opportunities, from which today’s Russia is so far removed.

A Sacred Space Is Never Empty

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria Smolkin
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Sacred Space ◽  
Russian Revolution ◽  
Mikhail Gorbachev ◽  
Soviet Leadership ◽  
Sacred Spaces ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Communist Ideology ◽  
History Of ◽  
Soviet Experiment

When the Bolsheviks set out to build a new world in the wake of the Russian Revolution, they expected religion to die off. Soviet power used a variety of tools—from education to propaganda to terror—to turn its vision of a Communist world without religion into reality. Yet even with its monopoly on ideology and power, the Soviet Communist Party never succeeded in overcoming religion and creating an atheist society. This book presents the first history of Soviet atheism from the 1917 revolution to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991. The book argues that to understand the Soviet experiment, we must make sense of Soviet atheism. It shows how atheism was reimagined as an alternative cosmology with its own set of positive beliefs, practices, and spiritual commitments. Through its engagements with religion, the Soviet leadership realized that removing religion from the “sacred spaces” of Soviet life was not enough. Then, in the final years of the Soviet experiment, Mikhail Gorbachev—in a stunning and unexpected reversal—abandoned atheism and reintroduced religion into Soviet public life. The book explores the meaning of atheism for religious life, for Communist ideology, and for Soviet politics.

scholarly journals “As quiet as a mouse”: Media use in Azerbaijan

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (s1) ◽  
pp. 893-911
Author(s):  
Ilgar Seyidov
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Media Use ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Soviet Period ◽  
Political Systems ◽  
Media System ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Supportive Role ◽  
The Media ◽  
The One

AbstractDuring the Soviet period, the media served as one of the main propagandist tools of the authoritarian regime, using a standardized and monotype media system across the Soviet Republics. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, 15 countries became independent. The transition from Soviet communism to capitalism has led to the reconstruction of economic, socio-cultural, and political systems. One of the most affected institutions in post-Soviet countries was the media. Media have played a supportive role during rough times, when there was, on the one hand, the struggle for liberation and sovereignty, and, on the other hand, the need for nation building. It has been almost 30 years since the Soviet Republics achieved independence, yet the media have not been freed from political control and continue to serve as ideological apparatuses of authoritarian regimes in post-Soviet countries. Freedom of speech and independent media are still under threat. The current study focuses on media use in Azerbaijan, one of the under-researched post-Soviet countries. The interviews for this study were conducted with 40 participants living in Nakhichevan and Baku. In-depth, semi-structured interview techniques were used as research method. Findings are discussed under six main themes in the conclusion.

Gorbachev, ideology, and the fate of Soviet communism

2000 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 457-474
Author(s):  
R. Judson Mitchell ◽  
Randall S. Arrington
Keyword(s):  
Soviet Union ◽  
Communist Party ◽  
Party Leader ◽  
Mikhail Gorbachev ◽  
Party Leaders ◽  
Democratic Centralism ◽  
The Soviet Union ◽  
Party Elites ◽  
Basic Source ◽  
The Russian Federation

The collapse of the Soviet Union has spurred much scholarly debate about the reasons for the rapid disintegration of this apparently entrenched system. In this article, it is argued that the basic source of ultimate weakness was the obverse of the system’s strengths, especially its form of organization and its relation to Marxist–Leninist ideology. Democratic centralism provided cohesion for the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) but also gave inordinate control over ideology to the party leader. Mikhail Gorbachev carried out an ideological revision that undercut the legitimacy of party elites and his restructuring of the system left the party with no clear functional role in the society. The successor party, the Communist Party of the Russian Federation (CPRF), has made a surprising comeback for communism, utilizing the Leninist model of party organization, which has proved to be highly effective in the Russian political culture. Furthermore, the CPRF, under party leaders like Gennadi Zyuganov, has avoided Gorbachev’s ideological deviations while attempting to broaden the party’s base through the cultivation of Russian nationalism.

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