Pro-Military Eye for the Russian Guy

Submitted by Diane Farsetta on

To boost "the feeling of national pride among its citizens," the Russian Defense Ministry is launching Zvezda ("Star"), a new television channel. Zvezda's manager said the channel "will dedicate 10 percent of its programs to military topics - movies, documentaries, talk shows and a planned reality show detailing the lives of conscripts in barracks." It's seen as an attempt "to boost military prestige and counter negative reports of hazing, desertions and corruption in the armed forces." All of Russia's TV channels are "either owned or tightly controlled by the government."

Main Source: 
Associated Press, February 21, 2005
Topics: 
International
Media

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JayHarris replied on

from Arianna Huffington's column today (2/23/05): "Now the Bushies are taking things to the next level. Not content to buy their press coverage retail, they are producing and distributing their own news network. And, no, I'm not talking about Fox. It's the Pentagon Channel, a 24/7 niche network brought to you by the Department of Defense. Started last year as an internal public relations unit within the Pentagon designed to keep U.S. soldiers and their families informed about all things military, the network is now expanding its reach to the general public. A number of cable systems, including Time Warner, already carry the Pentagon Channel--and the Dish Network will soon begin beaming the station to its more than 11 million viewers right alongside the half-dozen porn channels the satellite giant offers."