The document specifies that recently “a tendency on free speech restriction in a number of mass media, on TV particularly, is observed which seriously damages the whole process of democratization in the country”. At “Rodina” they consider the time fault on the state TVs and newspapers done only in favor of “Yedinaya (United) Russia”.
Leader of Moscow’s “Apple”nists Sergey Mitrokhin has the same opinion and elaborated a bill “On providing with equal access to mass media for political parties in the Moscow city”. The document is to regulate activity of the state press and also editions subsidized from the budget. Mitrokhin suggests to distribute quotas among mass media dependently on the number of voices gained by a party during the elections, but no lesser than one publication a month. For a party gained 3 % of voices, the size of a publication must not be lesser than 1000 of printing symbols while a party with 30 % of trust from population – 5000 of printing symbols.
Two days later, the Higher Chamber of Russian parliament stated about their intention to struggle for cleaned journalistic rows. According to head of the Commission on Information Politics of the Council of Federation Lyudmila Narusova, they are preparing amendments to the Federal law “On mass media” and to the Criminal Proceedings Code which are to increase responsibility of journalists for the published materials. The senator specified new amendments would touch upon out of date regulations on private newspapers and TVs. Amendments “relating to responsibility for unverified information and instigation to hostility between nations and confessions in mass media” are suggested to be introduced to the Criminal Proceedings Code of the RF.
And at last, on Tuesday, April 11, “Novie Izvestiya” informed on intention of MPs to oblige independent mass media agitate for all the candidates but not only for those editions and channels sympathize with. The appropriate bills were introduced at the Duma by MPs of “Yedinaya Russia” Gennadiy Gulkov and Alexander Khinshtein and representatives of the faction “Narodnaya volya (People’s will) – SEPR” Nikolay Bezborodov and Sergey Baburin. If suggestions of the law makers are approved, then pro-communist newspapers will have to praise the right parties, and liberal ones – the ruling one.
In fact, independent will be equaled with the state mass media. With the only difference in broadcast time at the state channels as it will be free of charges for candidates and parties taking part in the elections when non governmental channels will take money for their service.
Every time politicians suggest amending the law on mass media – observers, representatives of the media community and human rights activists repeat the same words.
The problem is not in excessive liberalization of the Russian laws (standards in the sphere of mass media are not exclusion), but in not obligation on their implementation. It is not necessary to rewrite laws, but to watch their implementation, experts assert. But these calls are heard by very little people.
It is a great temptation to see in the latest legislative initiatives gleams of future battles for information channels and to attach to the Kremlin two of the three amendments.
The problem is, however, that at the beginning of March the first prime-Minister Dmitriy Medvedyev let them know that the government and President’s administration will not touch upon the legislation in the sphere of mass media nearest future. “It is not necessary…just to touch the basic laws on mass media”, Medvedyev said. It has turned out that the latest bills are the initiative especially from downwards. As well as an attempt done by the State Duma last autumn to oppose legislatively the plots on eaters of human beings on TV. It is curious, since that the law on mass media was not introduced for a wide consideration at the parliament.
Seasonal behavior of some groups of people is a well known phenomenon. As psychologists assert, autumn-spring sharpening is observed among those whose health was seriously weakened while facing a severe reality. Doctors call to be especially careful when one meets such people in public and the main one is not to react on their inadequate behavior, in other case, we may disturb other ill people. Certainly, this recommendation does not spread on the majority of MPs. But we should not forget about it completely: as proved by the results of voting upon the document prepared on studying the plot on eaters of human beings screened by the NTV. To remind, with 418 voices “for” only one MP was against.

Andrey Lomkin