The article in the New Yorker

[Daniel Rancour-Laferriere]

31 Jan 07

Dear Colleagues,
The article by Michael Specter in THE NEW YORKER (29 Jan 07) does have 
its shortcomings (e.g., the Siberia/Yakutia gaffe), but the article also 
catches the general drift toward top-down control and bottom-up 
compliance which is occurring in the Russian Federation today.  Those 
who resist this trend are in danger.  In our country you can call George 
W. Bush an idiot or a shrub or whatever in the press - and survive.  But 
if in the Russian press today you refer to that country's president as 
Akakii Akakievich Putin - then the kontrol'nyi vystrel is a real 
possibility.

The gradual crackdown on the media - or the increasing willingness of 
the media (especially television) to toe the line - is ominous.  Andrei 
Norkin was cut off in mid-sentence.  Can you imagine that happening to 
Walter Cronkite?

For an insightful study of what has been going on in the media, I 
recommend the recent article in RUSSIAN LIFE (Jan-Feb 2007, pp. 28-39) 
by Alex Lupis, titled "Freedoms Found and Lost."

For the increasing xenophobia and ethnonationalism which has been 
developing under Putin, I recommend the BIGOTRY MONITOR.

For general trends in all areas of Russian society today, the JOHNSON 
RUSSIA LIST is a very rich source.


With regards,

Daniel Rancour-Laferriere
Emeritus Professor of Russian
University of California, Davis

-------------------------------------------------------------------------
 Use your web browser to search the archives, control your subscription
  options, and more.  Visit and bookmark the SEELANGS Web Interface at:
                    http://seelangs.home.comcast.net/
-------------------------------------------------------------------------