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MEDIA CONTROL IS OBVIOUS
[05:54 pm] 22 June, 2007
Most of the countries in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
are suffering under new forms of media control that are severely
limiting independent news media, according to a report issued today by
Freedom House.
The report, `Muzzling the Media: The Return of Censorship in the
Commonwealth of Independent States,’ describes a contemporary model of
censorship in the former Soviet Union that is achieved through a mix
of state-enabled oligarchic control, broadcast monopolies of
presidential `families,’ and judicial persecution, as well as subtle
and overt forms of intimidation. The report’s findings are derived
from Freedom of the Press, Freedom House’s annual global survey of
media independence.
Freedom House Executive Director Jennifer Windsor said that `while the
old Soviet model of complete state domination of news media has been
cast aside, a new and in many ways equally pernicious model of media
control in the CIS has emerged.’
Of particular concern is the sharp downward decline in many CIS
countries in the last several years. During this time, the report
cites four major trends that have emerged: intensified control over
mass media, particularly television; tighter legislation curbing media
freedom; increased attention to international broadcasting; and
greater control of print media.
The survey’s most recent findings show that ten of the twelve
post-Soviet states are ranked Not Free, indicating that these
countries do not provide basic legal, political, and economic
guarantees and protections for open and independent journalism. Of the
ten Not Free countries, none is moving in the direction of more
freedom and most have a decidedly downward trajectory. Of the 195
countries examined in the survey, three of the ten worst press freedom
abusers – Belarus, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan – are found in the CIS.
Despite the best efforts of authorities, however, some degree of
independent reporting persists in authoritarian CIS states, due to the
commitment of enterprising and courageous journalists, as well as the
possibilities offered by new technologies.
`The Internet is a principal alternative and challenger to media
hegemony in the CIS,’ said Christopher Walker, Freedom House director
of studies and the report’s author. `But while the Internet remains
relatively free in Russia and other post-Soviet countries, it is
quickly becoming a target for regulatory intervention by the
authorities.’
Absent the rule of law and meaningful legal protections, the CIS is
also one of the world’s most dangerous places for
journalists. Intimidation, physical violence, and even murder of
reporters and editors have become commonplace for news professionals
who investigate political and corporate corruption. Journalists in
virtually every CIS country have been victims of contract killings or
otherwise met death under suspicious circumstances. In Russia alone,
at least two dozen journalists have been killed since President
Vladimir Putin assumed office seven years ago.
The report notes that press freedom’s trajectory in the CIS was not
always so dire and that an opening of the press had been achieved in
the aftermath of the Soviet Union’s collapse. By 1994, six of twelve
countries in the former Soviet Union had risen to the Partly Free
category in Freedom of the Press. A decade later, a profound reversal
had taken place, with eleven countries ranked Not Free by 2004.