Distorted Russian reality

Jan 17 2023 The Washington Post

Vladimir Kara-Murza: Russians are living in a frightening, distorted reality

“PRETRIAL DETENTION CENTER 5, Moscow — Among the most stressful aspects of Russian prison life is exposure to government propaganda. Every cell I’ve been in has a television that is constantly turned on — and, with brief respites such as soccer matches during the recent FIFA World Cup, most of the airtime across all major networks is taken up by relentless pro-regime and pro-war messaging not dissimilar to the “Two Minutes Hate” from George Orwell’s 1984. Except that, in Vladimir Putin’s Russia, televised hate goes on for hours.”

“This is the distorted reality that millions of Russians have lived in for years — and it is frightening.”

“It would take Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and a large-scale war in the middle of Europe for Western governments to finally bring sanctions on the Kremlin’s propaganda machine and its chief operators.”

“Western politicians and commentators who blame Russian society for tolerating this regime for such a long time should not forget about their own leaders who did exactly the same.”