Even on Russia's state TV, the tone is changing: Putin's propaganda machine is stuck
Created: 09/17/2022, 04:49 am
By: Franziska Schwarz
Previously a rarity: open criticism of Vladimir Putin © Uncredited/POOL TASS Host Photo Agency/AP/dpa
Open criticism of Vladimir Putin can suddenly be heard on Russian state television - and the moderators who are loyal to the Kremlin seem overwhelmed.
Moscow - The program of Russian state television is usually the same as pro-Putin festivals, even during the Ukraine war, which officially cannot be called that.
The successes of the Ukrainian counter-offensive are now provoking public criticism of the Kremlin chief.
Former Duma member Boris Nadezhdin, for example, openly questioned the strategy of the Russian military in a political talk on NTW on Sunday - an affront.
Contradiction against Vladimir Putin is so rare on TV that the US news agency AP asked Nadezhin directly.
After all, the politician called for peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, an undertaking that is currently failing due to the reluctance of Volodymyr Zelenskyy's government, as the Kremlin claims.
However, Nadezhin told AP that negotiations are possible “anytime, anywhere”.
In front of the NTW audience, he even underlined that he did not fear any penalties for "fake news" about the "military special operation".
Putin criticism on Russia TV: "Hard questions" about the Ukraine war
The fact that propaganda TV suddenly had "tough questions" ready for the Kremlin chief was also noticed by the US broadcaster CBS on the occasion of the NTW talk.
The political expert Viktor Olevich, who also no longer wanted to believe Putin's narrative, was also in the group with Nadezhin: "You say everything is going according to plan," he exclaimed incredulously, according to CBS.
"Do they really want to tell us that half a year ago it was planned to fend off a counter-offensive?"
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Russian military administrator on TV: "The situation is not funny"
In one of the most recent editions of "60 Minutes" - an evening political talk on the state broadcaster Rossija 1 - a pro-Russian administrator in the Donetsk region said quite openly, according to n-tv: "The situation is not easy, the situation is not funny.” Ukraine's counter-offensive will not be successful, “but we must not relax”.
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The Kremlin-loyal moderators Evgeny Popov and Olga Skabeeva were not even able to "moderate" this statement so relaxed, according to the report.
Russia's state television and its role in the Ukraine war
In the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Kremlin bans the spread of alleged false news about Russia's armed forces.
Officially, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and his followers are only talking about a "special military operation".
Violators of the new law face up to 15 years in prison.
In March 2022, journalist Marina Ovsyannikova dared to stage a live protest on Russian state television against the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Russia fined them.
The distribution of the Russian state media RT and Sputnik has been banned in the EU since the beginning of March because they are accused of war propaganda.
In July, RT France failed in its case against the EU broadcasting ban before the European Court of Justice.
The offshoot RT Germany is also not allowed to broadcast in this country.
TV presenter on the counter-offensive: Ukrainians make "shitty chocolates"
Maxim Yusin, foreign policy commentator for the Russian newspaper
Kommersant
, also spoke quite freely on state television.
"I have the impression that we were caught cold," he said in an NTW talk - although the moderator wanted to prevent him from doing so, the Swiss portal
blick.ch
observed .
Yusin was actually "shouted down" by the studio audience for this statement, while the moderator downplayed the successes of the Ukrainians: "They can make chocolates out of shit." The Kremlin chief now has to endure criticism off-screen as well.
Local politicians are openly calling on Putin to resign.
(frs)
