Stories from RuNet Echo from November, 2012
The Surreality of Russian eDemocracy
The Coordinating Council of the Russian Opposition met for second time on November 24, 2012. In keeping with the its online origins, participants and audience members actively tweeted updates and excerpts from the four-hour-long meeting. RuNet Echo has translated an excerpt of the minutes, featuring eDemocracy in action.
In Russia, Fake News Sounds Real
A Russian version of The Onion wreaks havoc on unsuspecting bloggers. Could it be a Kremlin plot? That's probably a hoax!
Waving Banners “Help Us Please,” Russian Prisoners Revolt
Over the weekend at a prison in Kopeysk, roughly 250 inmates began a protest on the roof of a prison building, waving banners that begged "help us please," while complaining of torture and extortion.
Top Russian Journalist, Oleg Kashin, Fired from Print Newspaper, Moves to Online Journal
Earlier today, Kommersant newspaper announced that it has fired columnist Oleg Kashin, one of Russia's best known journalists. In comments to Lenta.ru, Kommersant's chief editor, Mikhail Mikhailin, explained [ru] that Kashin's...
United Russia MPs Object to Online Satire
United Russia MPs threaten to take humorous website to court for libel. The outrage, however, was likely provoked by an internet tabloid.
Russia: Attempted Hijacking of Regional News Website
When internet domains are hijacked, the theft is usually facilitated by hackers. A stolen email password, a virus, or compromised server can wreak havoc on the ability of owners to...
YouTube Temporarily Lands on Russia's Internet Blacklist
Thanks to a temporary glitch [ru], the Russian federal government briefly banned the entirety of YouTube earlier today. This comes shortly after Google's IP address [ru] also temporarily appeared on the state's...
A Dying Putin Shakes Up Russia's Defense Ministry to Promote An Heir?
Earlier this month, as Americans prepared to re-elect President Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin fired his long-time ally Anatoly Serdyukov, the man who's served as Russia's Defense Minister since 2007. Russian netizens are now busy speculating about his replacement, Sergei Shoigu, and whether or not he's meant to replace a rumored-to-be-ailing Putin.
Misreading Magnitsky & Congress From Russia
Russian opposition bloggers were ecstatic on Saturday, after the United States House of Representatives passed the so-called Magnitsky Act with bipartisan support. Unfortunately for supporters of the Act, it is still far from becoming law.
Lurkmore or Lurkless? The Russian Internet Blacklist In Action
A new Russian law that threatens Internet censorship came into effect on November 1. This week, netizen outrage followed the blocking of one particularly popular website by Russian ISPs. The site in question was Lurkmore, a Wikipedia-like compendium of articles on Internet culture and memes, written in an irreverent style with heavy use of Internet jargon.
New Hard Times for Russian Journalism
This week, one of the RuNet's biggest bloggers, Rustem Adagamov, posted a letter from Yevgenia Albats, the chief editor of The New Times, one of Russia's most prominent weekly magazines. In her letter, Albats announced a new subscriptions initiative, the fate of which will decide the journal's future, and set an important precedent for political journalism in Russia.
The Trouble With Russian Nationalism
This year, Unity Day lived up to its name, though in a rather unexpected way. In 46 towns and cities across Russia, including Moscow, roughly 30 thousand people took part in far-right extremist rallies. While this is an infinitesimally small fraction of the country's total population, Unity Day's far-right groups have managed to attract supporters all over Russia.
An Online Project for Monitoring the State of Russia's Roads
The RosYama project is a method of monitoring the state of the roads and their compliance with latest government standards. Anyone who notices a roadway that fails to meet these standards can use RosYama's service.
Is the Kremlin Trying to Stop Governors from Using Twitter?
In an article [ru] published earlier this week, Izvestia newspaper cited anonymous sources inside the Kremlin who claim that the federal government is now discouraging regional heads and governors from...
Russia's Volunteer Aid Capacity, On Vivid Display in Krymsk, Is Absent in Dagestan
In the aftermath of flood in Krymsk, Russia saw an outpouring of volunteer efforts, with civil society and representatives of different political fractions coming together to aid Krymsk's citizens. Perhaps the indifference about Derbent's suffering lies in the fact that Dagestan is a republic plagued by radical Islamist insurgency, where violence and death occurs daily.
Russians React to Obama's Reelection
With America's presidential elections finally over, Russians are reacting to Barack Obama's reelection, voicing fears and hopes about topics ranging from the Reset to America's waning global hegemony. Politicians and netizens have already begun weighing in.
The Latest LiveJournal Sensation, Courtesy of the Russian Special Forces
The anonymous LJ blog hardingush was created on September 15. Now, less than two months later, the blog, subtitled "Ingush Special Forces, is number 425th in LJ's general user rating. Netizens have left over 4,000 comments on its various posts. Four of these posts also made it into the October top-25 list of North Caucasus bloggers. But who's behind the account?
What Ever Happened to Russian Nationalism?
Just two years ago, Russians' capacity for street protests seemed limited to soccer hooligans and race riots. This, it appeared at the time, was the most the world could expect from Russia's struggling civil society, a ramshackle patchwork of decidedly unpopular liberals and apparently bloodthirsty nationalists. After last winter's protests, what's changed?
Russia: Blogging Conference Draws Regional Participants
Regional bloggers convened at a Moscow conference organized by a state run news agency. Was it simply an overture aimed at new media, or an attempt to exert more control over the internet?
