Business Insider – by JOE WEISENTHAL
Vladimir Putin just dissolved major state media organization RIA Novosti, which has been around since 1941.
In its place will be a new organization run by a TV presenter who had been embroiled in anti-gay remarks.
RIA Novosti’s own report characterizes the move as an effort to tighten the state’s grip on the media.
The Kremlin announced Monday the dissolution of RIA Novosti, the country’s major state-run news agency, amid a significant reorganization of state-owned media assets.
News agency RIA Novosti and the state-owned Voice of Russia radio will be scrapped and absorbed into a new media conglomerate called Rossiya Segodnya, according to a decree signed by President Vladimir Putin.
The move is the latest in a series of shifts in Russia’s news landscape, which appear to point toward a tightening of state control in the already heavily regulated media sector.
In a separate decree published Monday, the Kremlin appointed Dmitry Kiselyov, a prominent Russian television presenter and media manager recently embroiled in a scandal over anti-gay remarks, to head Rossiya Segodnya.
Head of the presidential administration Sergei Ivanov said the changes were about saving money and making state media more effective.
“Russia has its own independent politics and strongly defends its national interests: it’s difficult to explain this to the world but we can do this, and we must do this,” Ivanov told reporters.
Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/ria-novosti-2013-12#ixzz2n08D48R1
This isn’t as sinister as it sounds, but a reflection on the success and rise of Russia Today which has pretty much eaten up most of RIA Novosti and VoR’s users leaving them much a waste of revenue.
Pravda has also seen a massive rise in readership, its perhaps a tabloidy sort of outlet compared to the sleek RT but quite useful for stories not seen elsewhere, Pravda always had a hint of the National Enquirer about it and was considered a title of ridicule here in the UK, cartoons of Pravda editors typing with Russian soldiers pointing guns to their heads sort of thing.
But look at those and then look at Russia Today. Bright, clear, informative, intelligent commentary and editorials, flawless presenters and has a habit of bluntly bashing Washington and London without pulling the punches but Syria was the litmus test for RT, more people were turning to the Russians for the real news than the western medias and RT tripped up a lot of western lies over Syria leaving the politicians looking stupid.
I’ve seen several posters lately claiming that RT was just another controlled opposition outlet. It may or may not be true, I honestly can’t say for certain.
Personally, I’ve come across and posted some very good articles and videos from RT. They have higher credibility with me than many others.
Press TV is my favorite, as far as foreign media is concerned.