Why this article
On the occasion of the release of the new special issue of Courrier international, Russia: the state of war, we focus on the interview with Elizaveta Ossetinskaïa, director of The Bell, a Russian online media established abroad, conducted by Étienne Bouche, a journalist specializing in Russia for the weekly magazine.
In this exchange, the Russian journalist recounts her journey and the upheavals that Russian media have experienced since the end of the Cold War up to the invasion of Ukraine. A topic that will interest first-year students for their media theme.
If only one quote were to be remembered
“I started this profession in the middle of the 1990s, at a time when the world of media was in turmoil and offered opportunities: many channels and newspapers were emerging, but everything was developing in an anarchic way.”
At the end of the Cold War in 1991, post-Soviet Russia opened up to economic liberalism. This resulted in numerous privatizations that allowed personalities from the Russian business world, close to the power, to quickly enrich themselves. These individuals are called oligarchs, from the term “oligarchy,” which refers to a political regime dominated by a small group of individuals forming a ruling class.
In the 1990s, several oligarchs eager to gain influence took control of newspapers and television channels. At the same time, media open to Western influence appeared in Russia, including the Russian versions of Cosmopolitan and the economic magazine Forbes.
However, starting in 2014 and the annexation of Crimea, the Russian government began to hinder the operation of independent media, especially those financed by foreign capital. Elizaveta Ossetinskaïa explains that the newspaper she was working for at the time (RBC) faced pressure after publishing an investigation on the presence of Russian soldiers in Donbass, as well as articles related to the Panama Papers scandal (which involved Vladimir Putin and his circle).
To limit Western influence in Russian media, Vladimir Putin decided to amend the law in 2015, limiting the share of foreign capital in Russian media to 20%, which led to investors fleeing. It is in this context that Elizaveta Ossetinskaïa decided to found in 2017 the online media The Bell, established abroad. She defines it as a “hybrid model, with journalists both outside and inside Russia.”
She explains that the work of independent journalists has become extremely complex since 2022 and the invasion of Ukraine (referred to by the Kremlin as “special military operation”). From this date, military censorship has been clearly assumed by the government. A journalist who criticizes the Russian army or the invasion in Ukraine can now risk up to fifteen years in prison. Many have also been labeled as “foreign agents” due to their work.
Today Russia is more isolated from the outside world than ever before. Without the use of VPNs, it is impossible to access localized media from abroad. This digital confinement established by the Russian government is reminiscent of the Great Digital Wall established by the Chinese government in the early 2000s.
For further reading
To better understand the difficulty for Russians to get information from sources not affiliated with the government, we offer you the following links:
Not to mention the brand new special issue of Courrier international, which offers you a rare glimpse into this increasingly closed country. A number mostly made from Russian sources, most of them in exile.
And what not to miss this week
As the war in Iran has significant repercussions on the global economy, this video explains why the Strait of Hormuz is at the heart of the showdown between Washington and Tehran. A topic that complements the theme of new conquest spaces, on the high school curriculum.
