Диссертация (1136841), страница 21
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“O Sotsiologakh, Televedushchikh, Rytsaryakh i Chuchelakh:Dekonstruktsiya Mediadiskursa Sotsial’nykh Problem [About Sociology, TelevisionPresenters, Knights and Stuffed: The Deconstruction of Media Discourse of SocialProblems].” Zhurnal issledovaniy sotsial’noy politiki 8 (1): 13–32.61Anastasia Kazun. 2015. “Konstruirovanie Publichnoy Diskussii i StrategiiDeproblematizatsii Vstupleniya Rossii v VTO [Construction of Public Debate andDeproblematization Strategies of Russia’s Accession to the WTO].” Zhurnalinstitutsional’nykh issledovaniy 7 (1): 95–111.62Iskander Yasaveev.
2006. Konstruirovanie «Povestki Dnya»: Sotsial’nye ProblemyRossiyskogo Obshchestva v Novostyakh Federal’nykh Telekanalov [Agenda-Setting: SocialProblems of Russian Society in the News the Federal TV Channels]. Scientific notes of theKazan State University. Humanitarian Sciences.5776Framing Sanctions in the Russian Media77MethodThis article analyzes the key strategies used to deproblematize theeconomic sanctions (and the Russian food embargo) in four leadingRussian newspapers from March 2014 to December 2014.
AlthoughRussia has a large number of registered print media, many only existnominally, or primarily reprint and rewrite reports from other sources.Thus, it seems logical to focus on discussions that occurred in the mostprominent newspapers: Rossiyskaya Gazeta, Novaya Gazeta, Argumenty iFakty and Kommersant. We selected the most influential print media usingthe Title Popularity Ranking (TPR) of printed Russian media.
This rankingis based on the following three parameters: circulation, advertising pricesand citation ratios (i.e., the citation of one media outlet in other print-mediaoutlets). Thus, TPR evaluates the popularity of a media outlet among thegeneral population, advertisers and journalists. Because of its compositenature, we can assume that this rating accurately reflects the real marketsituation of the publications.Additionally, the print publications included in the sample representdifferent viewpoints: pro-government (Rossiyskaya Gazeta), the politicalopposition (Novaya Gazeta), a popular mass newspaper (Argumenty iFakty) and a business publication (Kommersant).
Thus, we consider thediscussion that appeared in the four newspapers, which could be placed atthe poles of two axes: ideological stance and information category.Between March 2014 and December 2014, these newspapers published3,173 articles on the sanctions and the Russian food embargo.After the sampling, we performed a search for the articles in thesenewspapers that use the keyword “sanctions” using the Integrumdatabase.63 Additionally, articles that were not relevant to our study focuswere excluded from the analysis. Articles that expressed opinions on thepotential and/or actual impact of the sanctions (and the introduction of theRussian food embargo, i.e., “anti-sanctions”) on the Russian economywere considered to be relevant.
The analysis did not include articles thatmentioned sanctions that did not refer to the economic sanctionsimplemented against Russia (i.e., the word was used in another sense or inrelation to another country) and articles that mentioned the sanctions as achallenge for the domestic economy in passing.This research relates public opinion and the debate as expressed inthe print media.
We do not analyze the position of business representatives(whose attitude toward the current situation in Russia is neverthelessThe Integrum database contains extensive print media archives: approximately 500 Russianmagazines, and more than 250 central and 1,000 regional newspapers.6377Framing Sanctions in the Russian Media78interesting64) because this topic is suitable for a separate study.
Anotherlimitation of this study is the relatively low level of media freedom inRussia. The Press Freedom Index characterizes the circumstances inRussia as “unfavorable.” During the period covered by the study, Russiawas ranked 148th (of 180 countries).33 Many researchers have examinedthe pressure experienced by the media in Russia. 65 However, severalfactors make our research reliable. First, we do not analyze the views ofinterest groups regarding the economic sanctions but focus on the mediaframing of this problem in Russia. Newspapers that are loyal to thegovernment may play a substantial role in the deproblematization ofsanctions. Therefore, the significant number of such newspapers does notconstitute an obstacle for research on this process.
In addition, the sampleof newspapers and magazines used in this study includes the oppositionpress (e.g., Novaya Gazeta), which should enable us to analyze the featuresof the coverage of the sanctions in print media with an alternativeideological orientation. Therefore, although television has a largeraudience, for the purposes of this study, it is preferable to analyze printmedia. Russian television engages in propaganda more than the press.Television limits the possibilities of the government’s opponents toparticipate in discussions. The print media are more independent andenable us to analyze the discussion in detail, including the statements ofthe opposition. In addition, according to certain theories, the pressconstructs a hierarchy of the issues that receive media coverage andstructures the discussion on topical issues, whereas television only“highlights” certain aspects of such issues.66Empirical ResultsDiscussion of Economic Sanctions: Their Intensity and RelatedTopicsAndrei Yakovlev, Irina Levina, and Anastasia Kazun.
2015. Attitude to the National LeaderThrough the Lenses of Investment Climate Assessment: The Case of Russia. Working papersby NRU Higher School of Economics 98. Series WP BRP “Economics/EC.” 33 Press FreedomIndex 2014. http://rsf.org/index2014/en-index2014.php.65Olessia Koltsova. 2006. News Media and Power in Russia. London: Routledge; ElenaVartanova. 2000. “Media v Postsovetskoy Rossii: Ikh Struktura i Vliyanie [Media in PostSoviet Russia: Their Structure and Role].” Pro et Contra 5 (4): 61–81.66Elena Dyakova. 2003. “Massovaya Politicheskaya Kommunikatsiya v TeoriiUstanovleniya Povestki Dnya: Ot Effekta K Protsessu [Political Mass Communication in theTheory of Agenda-Setting: From the Effect to the Process].” Politicheskie issledovaniya 3:109–119.6478Framing Sanctions in the Russian Media79The debate regarding the economic sanctions originated immediately afterthe publication of the first sanctions list in March 2014.
However, the issueonly began to attract widespread attention in August-September 2014,when in response to the actions of the U.S. and the EU, the Russiangovernment introduced a food embargo (Figure 1). This decision by theRussian government limited the import of products from the countries thatjoined in the sanctions. Thus, during that autumn, the issue remainedprominent in the information agenda for several reasons. First, this periodwas the most difficult for businesses because of the need to adapt to thenew conditions.
As an interest group, businesspeople can be divided intotwo opposing groups. One group (primarily food businesses that operate inthe domestic market) benefited from the food embargo. The other(importers) suffered significant losses. However, each of the partiesactively participated in the public debate, seeking to protect and promoteits interests. In addition, the food embargo provided the authorities afavorable opportunity to demonstrate their attention to the needs ofdomestic manufacturers. If economic sanctions could be perceived as anindicator of government weakness, the response from the Russian side hadto demonstrate a willingness to confront the “external enemies.”Accordingly, the representatives of this interest group have also beeninterested in participating in the media debate.Simultaneously, the food embargo was a more interesting topic forthe public.
Changes in the food assortment in stores became apparent,whereas limits on the entry of certain officials into the U.S. and the EUhave virtually no impact on citizens’ lives. The media are interested inpublishing articles that have the most relevance for their audience. Thisapproach enables them to sell more copies and more effectively attractadvertisers. Therefore, the intensification of the debate on the sanctionsafter the introduction of the Russian food embargo was partly due to theactivities of interest groups and partly a result of the topic’s public“marketability.”Figure 1.
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