State Control of Mass Media and Propaganda

Question 1

How did Lenin view the press?

Answer 1

He thought it was central to advancing the revolution and ensuring the Communists retained power.

Question 2

What did Lenin announce he intended to do to the Press before the revolution/

Answer 2

He said he would close all “bourgeois newspapers” although this was only part of the overall plan

Question 3

What three reforms did Lenin install in November 1917 to control the press?

Answer 3

• The Decree on the Press which gave the government the power to close any newspapers which appeared to support a counter-revolution
• He established a state monopoly on advertising
• He nationalised the Petrograd Telegraph Agency which gave the government an electronic means of mass communication

Question 4

When was the Revolutionary Tribunal of the Press established? What was its role?

Answer 4

January 1918. It would censor the press by identifying journalists and editors who had committed “crimes against the people” and passing their names on to the Cheka, who could fine, imprison or exile them and confiscate their property

Question 5

What was ROSTA?

Answer 5

ROSTA was the sole means of distributing news in Lenin’s Russia

Question 6

How many papers had been shut down by 1921?

Answer 6

2000

Question 7

How did War Communism help Lenin’s control of the printed media?

Answer 7

The government nationalised all industries which included presses and paper suppliers.

Question 8

What was the name of the Party’s newspaper?

Answer 8

Pravda

Question 9

When did propaganda on Lenin begin?

Answer 9

January 1918 with the publication of the first photo of Lenin

Question 10

When was the assassination attempt on Lenin? How was it used by the propaganda?

Answer 10

August 1918. His recovery was described as miraculous and attempts were made to draw parallels between Lenin and Christ.

Question 11

How did the Cult of Lenin escalate during the Civil War?

Answer 11

• Busts and statues were produced despite the lack of resources
• A new style of writing about lenin emerged, painting him as humane and humble
• Lenin was photographed wearing the same hat as many normal workers

Question 12

What was Lenin’s opinion on the Cult of Personality that had sprung up around him?

Answer 12

He was uncomfortable with it but recognised that they played an important role in the consolidation of his power.

Question 13

Name a cartoon of Lenin that was used for propaganda purposes?

Answer 13

“A Spectre is Haunting Europe - the Spectre of Communism”, 1920

Question 14

Name a photomontage artist who produced propaganda for Lenin

Answer 14

Klutsis, who created posters advertising the electrification campaign

Question 15

When was Glavlit established?

Answer 15

1922

Question 16

What did Glavlit do?

Answer 16

It hired professional censors to screen books for anti-Communist biases. Any book that was blacklisted would be purged from Soviet libraries and placed in new special holding libraries, dubbed “book Gulags”, where only senior Communists could get to them.

Question 17

How did Stalin tighten censorship of literature?

Answer 17

• Zinoviev, Kamenev and Trotsky’s writings were put in the book Gulag
• Lenin’s writings were revised to remove praise of opponents
• Stalin’s writings were revised to remove any association with people he had purged

Question 18

How was Glavlit’s remit extended in 1928?

Answer 18

It was given control over all economic data

Question 19

How did Stalin extend control on the press?

Answer 19

He banned the publication of bad news such as natural disasters, industrial accidents or bad weather. Any good news was to be attributed to Stalin.

Question 20

What style of art flourished under Stalin?

Answer 20

Socialist Realism

Question 21

How did Khrushchev’s plan of allowing magazines to publish letters to encourage consumerism backfire?

Answer 21

• Consumer magazines were flooded with letters complaining about the quality of consumer goods
• Some women’s magazines, such as Rabotnitsa, published letters revealing real domestic problems such as alcoholism and violence

Question 22

What was Krokodil?

Answer 22

A satirical magazine that poked fun at drunks and truants to encourage people not to do the same

Question 23

What was the focus of many Khrushchev era films?

Answer 23

The contribution that ordinary people had made towards the victory in the GPW and the Civil War

Question 24

What was Estafeta Novosteo? When was it first broadcast?

Answer 24

It was the nation’s first news show. It was largely padded with features about model farm workers and how great factories were. It first broadcast in 1961.

Question 25

Why was Valentina Tereshkova significant?

Answer 25

She was the first woman in space, achieving the feat in 1963. There was lots of TV coverage around her focusing on her humble origins on a collective farm.

Question 26

How did film evolve under Brezhnev?

Answer 26

The subjects became more glamorous, spurring on a public desire for more material goods

Question 27

How did Brezhnev manipulate TV coverage?

Answer 27

• He edited clips of the war in Afghanistan to hide the extent of the brutality from the public
• He made sure all his speeches were always broadcast in full
• He ensured that he was always at the centre of news coverage

Question 28

Why did Brezhnev’s TV strategy end up backfiring?

Answer 28

As Brezhnev grew older and weaker, there was nowhere he could hide from the press as he got lost in his sentences and struggled to climb stairs. It became more ridiculous with the commentary overlaid which was singing the praises of Brezhnev

Question 29

What was Brezhnev’s control of the written press like?

Answer 29

Shaky. Western publications managed to get into the country like Vogue which promoted a more consumerist society.