Victor Shenderovich, a well-known Russian political satirist and journalist, will offer his perspective on the bittersweet experience of the Russian media in the aftermath of the collapse of the USSR. Shenderovich is the creator of the legendary television show “Kukly (Puppets),” which caricatured Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin, and other prominent figures of Russian politics. The popular program was broadcast on television channel NTV until it was cancelled in 2002, reportedly in response to pressure from the Kremlin. Shenderovich will talk about the ascent and defeat of NTV, which suffered the consequences of exercising the right to free speech in Putin’s Russia. He will also discuss censorship and self-censorship, and the power of underground satire in modern Russia.

This talk will be presented in Russian, with translation by Anna Krushelnitskaya. 

Live video streaming will be available at www.umich.edu/~iinet/iiwebtv/iiwebtv.mov. QuickTime is required to view the streaming video. Download the most recent version at www.apple.com/quicktime/download/

PLACE: 1636 International Institute, 1080 S. University Ave, Ann Arbor

SPONSORS: Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies and Weiser Center for Emerging Democracies

CONTACT: Rachel Brichta, rfacey@umich.edu, 734.615.8910

The University of Michigan Center for Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies is dedicated to advancing and disseminating interdisciplinary knowledge about the peoples, nations, and cultures of Russia, Central and Eastern Europe, and Eurasia, past and present. Through its own academic programs and its support of area-focused training and scholarship across U-M’s schools and colleges, CREES helps meet the nation’s ongoing need for experts with deep contextual knowledge who are proficient in the region’s languages. Through its outreach programs, CREES serves as a local, state, Midwest, and national resource on the region, providing instructional and informational services to the public, K-12 and postsecondary educators, media, government, business, and other constituencies. For more information, visit www.ii.umich.edu/crees.