Shaknazarov is known as a key Putin loyalist, says Gaufman: “It says a lot that he is deviating from the official line. He was a strong supporter of the annexation of Crimea, and even an important figure in Putin’s re-election campaign in 2018. It is striking that he does not tell the Kremlin story.”
It is still fairly mild criticism, she says, “but it does reflect the confusion that the average Russian feels. They have been told that the Russians are received as liberators, but they also see the reports of fighting. That does not match. “
Criticism in the media is generally not tolerated, especially not on mainstream TV channels. That is not to say that critical voices can never be heard on talk shows. “Before the war broke out, you often saw some criticism in Russian talk shows,” says correspondent Iris de Graaf. “For example, experts at the table expressed doubts about the government, about the economy, about corona policy.”
This kind of criticism seems to be tolerated to legitimize the Kremlin story. “Critics were often cut off quite quickly by the presenters. Or they were allowed to say something critical for half a minute, followed by thirty minutes of explanation from someone else, why all that would not be true.”
Strict guidelines
Now that the war is over, that semblance of permitted criticism has completely disappeared, says De Graaf. The talk shows are stuck with pro-Kremlin experts confirming Putin’s image of a successful ‘military operation’. Using the word war, or ‘discrediting the military operation’ can lead to years of incarceration.
Shaknazarov is usually someone who follows the Kremlin line and he is not interrupted for over two minutes. “Two minutes is perhaps more than most criticism,” says De Graaf. “But it’s only two minutes into a two-and-a-half hour broadcast, on a channel that constantly broadcasts talk shows. Whether it has any impact on the Russian population is doubtful.”
Gaufman finds it difficult to estimate whether Shaknazarov’s comments were approved in advance. “I can imagine that the editorial guidelines are strict now, with all the new rules for the media. Right now the talk shows need more loyalists.”
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