•  
  •  
 

Russian Language Journal

Keywords

Digital Media, Russia, Russian language

Abstract

Over the last ten years the Russian state has veered steadily toward authoritarianism, passing new socially repressive laws and harnessing television and radio to state propaganda and disinformation about Ukraine and the west. At the same time, platforms like Vimeo and Youtube have made uploading, sharing, and viewing digital content in high-quality formats more accessible to author-producers and viewers globally. These social changes have been followed by a movement of independent, fact-grounded digital storytelling built on documentary forms and deft investigative reporting that reveals the Russian state’s negligence, corruption, and efforts at social control. This article addresses the digital environment constructed by Russia’s new media stars during a time of social oppression and war. By focusing on how digital dissidents including Yuri Dud’, Irina Shikhman, and Karen Shainyan, all labeled “foreign agents” by the Russian state, address the state’s social neglect, disinformation campaigns, and repressive measures, we see how the digital environment opens new space for disclosure and dissent as Russia’s political, social, and geographical borders close down. This article introduces and analyzes the digital content of these figures, suggesting paths for incorporating their work into advanced language courses and cultural courses in translation. While the Russian state has enclosed large segments of its population in a chamber of disinformation and propaganda, Russia’s digital dissidents offer unprecedented access and accountable coverage of social and cultural life in contemporary Russia that can be mobilized responsibly.

Download

Share

COinS