Russia: Open Hostility in Moscow Surrounding Putin's Inauguration
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Donna Welles Both civilians and those charged with keeping order in the city displayed open hostility on Sunday, May 6, when protesters took to the streets of Moscow in anticipation of Vladimir Putin's inauguration. Russian LJ user gyperbol provided [1] [ru] readers with a detailed city map where the events of the day took place, along with the following numbered explanations: 1. Демонстран... more
Views: 1718Russia: US Envoy's Use of Twitter to Further Transparency
Region: Russian FederationWritten byDonna Welles Michael McFaul [1], the United States (US) Ambassador to Russia, used his Twitter account earlier this week to voice his concerns that diplomatic protocols had been violated when it appeared his schedule had been leaked to journalists at the NTV television network, a project of the state-owned natural gas company Gazprom. Global Voices discussed [2] the Obama administration's effo... more
Views: 1892Russia: “Anatomy of a Protest” Film Causes “NTV Lies” Scandal
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Veronica Khokhlova On Sunday, March 18, 2012, there were old TV sets [2], a mock coffin [3], and plenty of flowers [4] and cookies [5] outside the Ostankino TV tower [6] in Moscow, where a few hundred protesters gathered for a mock funeral of the “truthful television.” The unsanctioned rally was organized via social n... more
Views: 1319Russia: Fake US Ambassador Twitter Account Wreaks Havoc During Vote
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Donna Welles The March 4, 2012, Russian presidential election played out as many predicted: Vladimir Putin emerged with the majority of the vote. Given that a major theme of this election season is the impact citizen media has had on the political process, perhaps it is fitting that some of the day's drama resulted from a fake Twitter account of the United States' top diplomat in Moscow. Fictional... more
Views: 946Russia: The Early Days of Government Transparency
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Sven Hultberg Carlsson “Make your work available online.” It may seem a harmless demand, but in Russia it's more than that. Such a request led to Alexey Navalny [2], a famed anti-establishment blogger and activist, scrutinizing public procurement contracts to expose shady practices by officials and private companies. Navalny's project, RosPil [3] [ru], helpe... more
Views: 1054Russia: The “Big White Circle” Protest in Moscow
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Veronica Khokhlova On Sunday, February 26, 2012, thousands of people gathered in central Moscow for the Big White Circle [2] protest, forming a human chain [3] along most of the length of the Russian capital's 15.6 kilometer/9.7 mileGarden Ring [4] road, protesting against corruption and demanding a fair presidential election, which is to take place in one week, ... more
Views: 1697Russia: Day of Protests Divides Citizens
Region: Russian FederationWritten by Alexey Sidorenko Despite temperatures of -20 degrees, thousands of Russians went out to the streets to participate in election manifestations. Many, organised online, were protesting against the current election procedures and possible re-election of prime minister Vladimir Putin. Others, partly organised by pressure and bribes as well as fear of possible revolutions manifested that Putin should stay. Bo... more
Views: 833Russia: The Fake Political Twitter Account Phenomenon
Region: Russian Federation
Written by Alexey Sidorenko The Internet not only gives life to citizen activist groups, human bots or lolcat [1] lovers; online anonymity provides perfect conditions for human creativity and humor. Twitter is possibly the best platform for this quality, and in the Russian context this involves mixing anonymity, humor and political reality via a number of accounts belonging either to dead politicians or t... more
Views: 1461Russia: Social Networks Mobilise Society
Region: Russian Federation
Written by Marina Litvinovich Translated by Siân Sinnott Note: This post is part of RuNet Echo, a Global Voices project to interpret the Russian language internet More than a month has passed since the biggest Russian demonstrationsof the last decade in Bolotnaya Square, Moscow. Here is a selection of accounts [ru] from bloggers who were at the demonstration, as well as some of... more
Views: 827Russia: Demographic Crisis Means “No One Left To Draft”
Region: Russian Federation
Russia: Demographic Crisis Means “No One Left To Draft” By Donna Welles, Global Voices Russia is endowed with some of the greatest stores of natural resources in the world, and yet the demographic crisis that has plagued the country since the fall of the Soviet Union may leave Russia with no youth to defend their homeland. The total life expectancy of Russia is #161 in the world, which places it behind B... more
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