MOSCOW: Today, there are no political parties in Russia, only mass media. This is the little noticed result of the last parliamentary and presidential elections. To be sure, the press is powerful in most democracies and often influences the ways in which political messages are read by the public. But in more developed systems, political programs and ideas are ultimately the work of political parties and politicians – what people ultimately vote for or against. In Russia, the media don't "mediate"; they are the very source of Russia's political ideas. Russian voters vote don't vote a party line, they vote the mass media line.
MOSCOW: Today, there are no political parties in Russia, only mass media. This is the little noticed result of the last parliamentary and presidential elections. To be sure, the press is powerful in most democracies and often influences the ways in which political messages are read by the public. But in more developed systems, political programs and ideas are ultimately the work of political parties and politicians – what people ultimately vote for or against. In Russia, the media don't "mediate"; they are the very source of Russia's political ideas. Russian voters vote don't vote a party line, they vote the mass media line.