Cynicism with a Journalistic Face
Russian Media, Power, and Ukraine
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
Since January 2014, Russian television has taken a particular perspective on Ukraine. The reporting is unparalleled in its aggressiveness and demagoguery. Television channels show alleged “concentration camps for pro-Russian activists”, talk of a “genocide” directed against Ukraine’s Russian-speakers, and vilify the Euromaidan protest movement as “fascism”. No slur is too absurd for broadcast. Political opera-tives are at work behind this campaign of disinformation. But to implement it, compli-ant journalists are needed. Editors, reporters, and presenters lend themselves to this – for reasons of cynicism and political conviction. The fact that professional ethics and professional standards get lost in the process does not bother them. They see themselves in an information war with the West.
(Osteuropa 5-6/2014, pp. 175–192)