Stories from RuNet Echo from January, 2017
Meet ‘VKgoeswild,’ Ukraine's Classical Pianist-Turned Rocker
Despite winning numerous awards at international classical piano competitions and training with some of the biggest names in classical music, Viktoriya Yermolyeva decided to tackle another kind of music: rock.
Tabloid Tells Abusers How to Exploit Russia's Decriminalization of Domestic Violence
The pro-Kremlin tabloid “Life” shared a bizarre video, titled “He Beats You Because He Loves You,” reviewing the “top five ways to commit domestic violence” and get away with it.
A Russian Pilot Fights to Keep His Aging Aircraft From the Scrapheap
Alexander Poddubny has taken extraordinary measures to keep his Ilyushin Il-14 from the scrapheap, and now he's drowning in debt for his efforts.
Russian Political Prisoner Ildar Dadin Files Request to Move Prisons
"Are there really no colonies closer to Moscow?" Dadin's wife asked Russia's State Penitentiary Service.
Russian Developers Launch ‘Airbnb for Homophobes’
A new Russian website supposedly calculates the number of LGBT persons in cities around the country, in an effort to help people evade anti-discrimination policies by homestay networks like Airbnb.
Russian Police Lose an Easy Way to Trap ‘Internet Extremists’
On Tuesday, by revising one of its default privacy settings, the Russian social network Vkontakte significantly reduced the number of shared photographs publicly visible on individual account pages.
Russia Says No to Political Crowdfunding by Individuals
Russia's version of PayPal is shutting down the transfer of money to individuals collecting funds for political purposes—a decision that will undermine one presidential bid to challenge Putin in 2018.
Moscow's Top Cancer Hospital Under Pressure Amidst Drive for Health Care Privatization
Critics worry Moscow's Oncology Hospital No. 62 will close as part of a broader movement towards the privatization of the Russian health care system.
They’re Partying This Friday to Make America Great Again, In Russia
Invitations went out over social media this week, informing journalists about inauguration festivities organized by the “White Star” art collective, which includes several prominent figures in Russia’s pro-Kremlin youth movement.
Mapping the Smells of Kyiv
A small motley crew “with notepads taken from conferences and scraps of paper” recorded the scents of Kyiv this winter. The results, it turns out, are glorious.
Russians Are Hacking Your Beloved Fairy Tales. (LOL.)
It's not for everyone, but if you’ve got Russian and English under your belt, and you don’t mind a little obscenity, you’re liable to fall in love with this meme.
Website That Published ‘Yanukovych Blog’ Says It Was Fake
Little more than two weeks after first appearing on the news website Korrespondent, a blog purportedly written by former Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych has been deleted by the publication's editors.
New Russian App Works Like Uber, But for Funerals
It has all the convenience and technical pizzazz of the transportation network Uber, but this Russian app helps your arrange funerals, not rides.
Ukraine Bans Russia’s One Independent TV Station
The Ukrainian government has voted to remove Russian independent TV station Dozhd from its list of approved foreign broadcasters, giving providers one month to remove the station from their networks.
As Trash Piles Up in Russian Town, Mayor's Spokesperson Says Locals Are a Bunch of ‘Pigs’
There’s a quiet place called Yugorsk. Located in Russia's Khanty–Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Yugorsk is a flat, forested, relatively affluent town. In Yugorsk, the people are as dirty as pigs.
A Young Russian Governor's Fascist Chic
The acting governor of Kaliningrad, 30-year-old Anton Alikhanov, has a winter coat with some unusual arm patches. Some unusual fascist arm patches.
All the President's Fishermen: Who's Standing Behind Vladimir Putin?
Why is Putin meeting with fishermen from Novgorod so much? Are they really fishermen?
How Russia’s Conservative Movement Broke Through Online
In the last few years, we witnessed a conservative renaissance on the RuNet, though it's unclear where the community goes from here.
The Weird and Wonderful Work of a YouTuber Stay-at-Home Dad
Today you can find dozens of music videos shared on YouTube by a channel called “Kids Learning Tube,” where an anonymous American man has spent years uploading educational singing cartoons.
The Best and Worst of Russia's New Year's Laws
Every year, the Russian State Duma schedules laws to come into effect on January 1st. RuNet Echo marks the highlights and lowlights of the 2017 New Year's laws.
