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Controlling opposition

Controlling opposition. Censorship. Under Alexander II, Russia experienced glasnost (the policy of openness) for the first time

mikayla-joseph
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Controlling opposition

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  1. Controlling opposition

  2. Censorship • Under Alexander II, Russia experienced glasnost (the policy of openness) for the first time • 1865 saw a relaxation of censorship for newspapers and books, yet the government retained a right to withdraw books it felt dangerous, particularly those that criticised the ruling elite • Government departments also issued newspapers (Ruskii) providing information on official items, all of which saw an increase in the circulation of newspapers and periodicals (1855, 1020 books published, 1894, 10 691 books published) • The reactionary rule of Alexander III saw a clampdown on publications, Nicholas II relaxed censorship rules causing a rise in the number of books published • Censorship was however used, and certain newspapers were closed down. • Patriotic works were allowed, particularly the work of Tchaikovsky

  3. Nicholas II revised the glasnost policies of Alexander II • 1894 saw an expansion of the press and periodical circulation increased three fold from 1900 to 1914 • Publications could still be closed for distributing dangerous material, yet more newspapers were aimed at the proletariat • The reporting of the Duma’s decisions was also a new development, although details were often removed, with Rasputin referred to as ‘dark forces near the throne’ • By the outbreak of World War One significant gains had been made. Accordingly, Russia’s media network was on a par with those of other Western powers

  4. During World War One, Russian troops were subject to censorship in much the same way as other Western countries • News was gained from foreign broadcasts, including the fall of the Romanovs • The Bolsheviks, upon seizing power abolished all press freedoms to suppress counter revolutionaries, some opposed this, to incur the wrath of the Military War Committee (MRC) • By the 1920s, reporting was under total control of the Bolsheviks, with the Agitation and Propaganda department (Agitprop) being founded in 1921, with the main aim of creating an ideal view of Russian life • Schools, cinema and the radio were under constant surveillance to ensure no access to counter revolutionary material • Writers who supported the new regime flourished, and the Association of Proletarian Writers (APW) formed to allow the promotion of new ideas

  5. Stalin took censorship to a new level • By 1932, all literary groups were closed (including APW), with anyone wanting to write having to join the Union of Soviet Writers (USW). • Material had to be produced under the banner of socialist realism (reflecting the successes of the peasants and of communism), particularly focussing on the struggles of ordinary people to overcome oppression • All work had to be accessible to the population and approved by the party • Some writers changed their beliefs to fit in with the USW wishes, others who rebelled were sent into exile or executed

  6. World War Two and the New Soviet Man • Censorship a key feature of World War Two, especially about the rest of the world • Radios were distorted, news fictionalised and restrictions put on all the arts • Writers had to focus on glorifying Russia and promoting the New Soviet Man, the ideal citizen who was both hard working and supportive of communist ideals

  7. Censorship under Khrushchev • Khrushchev eased censorship in a similar way to Alexander II and Nicholas II. • Books and libraries were developed, and by the late 1950s, 65 000 books were published per year, twice that of the 1920s, with 8000 million books in 135 000 libraries • Newspaper readership extended to 60 million by the 1960s, with the most popular papers being those that supported government views (Pravda, Izvestiya and Trud), news was still distorted however.

  8. Propaganda • Propaganda and censorship were closely linked and used by all leaders. • The Tsars did not use propaganda as a tool of repression until after 1905, when Nicholas II portrayed his image through pamphlets, portraits, photos and staged events • The tercentenary celebrations of Romanov (1913) rule were used as an opportunity to raise the popularity of Tsarist rule and was received well. • World War One saw a rise in pro Tsarist imagery to show control, but the communists mastered the use of propaganda

  9. The use of slogans • The Bolsheviks used slogans to get across their message such as ‘Peace, Bread and Land’ and ‘All power to the Soviets’ • Pamphlets, newspapers, photos, portraits, posters and statues were all used to promote the regime and spread ideologies.

  10. Communist propaganda

  11. The cult of personality • Lenin and Stalin engendered a cult of personality, aiming to present the leaders as heroes worthy of worship • Imagery of Lenin was displayed after his death (embalmed in Red Square) • Renaming of Petrograd as Leningrad (1924) • Renaming of Tsaritsyn as Stalingrad (1925) • Slogan ‘Stalin is the Lenin of Today’ • Posters of Stalin depicting him as a man of the people

  12. Newspapers • Under the Communists, propaganda characterised main government institutions • The newspapers Pravda and Izvestiya were purely propaganda tools and used by Stalin to promote the Five Year Plans

  13. Groups • Youth organisations were established (the Pioneers and Komsomol) to protect the young against the dangers of bourgeois culture • Komosol members were to inform on those who criticised leadership and work on important construction projects • Membership increased five fold from 1929 to 1941

  14. The arts • The arts were manipulated to present traditional values • Trends which went against the norm were discouraged, such as jazz, drugs and homosexuality (which had been legalised by Lenin after the Revolution) were banned

  15. The Stakhanovite movement • Propaganda was used with the aim to increase productivity • The Stakhanovite movement praised the exceeding of production levels • Leisure pursuits were to promote communist ideals • Football teams (Dynamo and Spartak Moscow were invested in to show to Europe the athletic success of communism • Propaganda was therefore all pervasive and integral to the establishment of totalitarian rule

  16. The use of film and the cinema to promote communism • Film industry grew rapidly after 1907, by the time of the 1917 revolution there were 1000 cinemas • Stalin used cinema to promote collectivisation and the Five Year Plans • Under the guidance of the Council of People’s Commissars, Soviet cinema was immersed in socialist realism, although with destalinisation, greater creativity was allowed • In 1959, 145 films were produced and 59 000 cinemas existed, yet political ideology rather than entertainment was what most Russians experienced

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