“Kukly,” often translated as “Dolls,” was a satire program on Russian television starring puppet caricatures of the country’s politicians. It was heavily inspired by the UK’s “Spitting Image,” which ran on ITV from 1984 to 1996. “Kukly” was wildly popular; on any given week, it played on over half of the televisions in Russia. To put that in perspective, in America, the only time a show hits (and surpasses) 50% in TV ratings is on Super Bowl Sunday. Obviously, “Kukly” had the people’s attention.
In the name of free speech, former Russian president Boris Yeltsin chose to put up with their depiction of him as a feeble drunk. When Putin became president of Russia in 1999, the show skewered him relentlessly, including depictions of him as a big baby and as an impotent groom avoiding his wedding night duties. (For English subtitles of “First Night” and the big baby sketch, click CC on the video’s bottom bar.)
Putin was not amused. Government officials forced the show to remove Putin’s puppet, so they depicted him instead as a clouded mountain and a burning bush.
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I was just curious about this - the Kremlin has a stronghold on a lot of the media. RT cannot criticize Putin at all - at least it's not apparent that it has. So I was seeing if there are voices that are allowed to goof on their leader like we do. It appears that some have tried, but they seem to last very long.
Please post articles if you can find any.
This question was spurred on a little by this tweet: "A REAL scandal is the one sided coverage, hour by hour, of networks like NBC & Democrat spin machines like Saturday Night Live. It is all nothing less than unfair news coverage and Dem commercials. Should be tested in courts, can’t be legal? Only defame & belittle! Collusion?"
And please don't turn this thread into an anti-MSM one - start a new one for that.
This is about Freedom of speech in Russia - we can also include to the right to protest. 2 things that people are fearful of and Putin has in check to some degree.
Here's one article about political satire:
https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/the-rise-and-risks-of-political-satire-in-putins-russia-a7022436.html