[criley2]

Russians do not have free press and the state controlled media allows them to use nationalism to strongly insulate themselves from criticism and foreign press.

Combined with their propensity for assassinating dissenters and journalists, there is less willpower to resist the fascism.

It's to the point now that things like this improve Putin's poll numbers, not hurt them.

[debacle]

> the state controlled media allows them to use nationalism to strongly insulate themselves from criticism

Have you watched news in the US recently?

[criley2]

>Have you watched news in the US recently?

You mean have I watched the non-state controlled media from a widely disparate number of sources offering wildly disparate assessments of current events along a dramatically huge spectrum?

Have you watched Russian news, ever?

If you think American News and Russian (or Chinese) news are comparable, I don't know what to tell you. It's beyond ignorance at that point.

P.S. In Russia, there isn't any dissent. Like the major media in America, they are dissenting from the current government.

Do you understand that what is happening in America -- mass media dissent -- is literally impossible in Russia?

[dragonwriter]

It's possible that the GP was referring to the evidence in recent US news reporting that the present government is attempting to build control of the media analogous to that in Russia and prevent dissent, though clearly that attempt is in its early phases and has not yet succeeded. That, in other words, the implied conclusion of "Have you seen the media in the US?" wasn't "It's relationship to the state is just like in Russia" but "There is an active effort to transform the relationship of media to the state to one like that currently seen in Russia."

[throwaway91111]

I'm certainly not seeing any insulation here.

[jakeogh]

A flock of Mockingbirds.