· September, 2010

Stories about Russia from September, 2010

Russia: September 30 is Internet Day

RuNet Echo  30 September 2010

Russian online users celebrate Internet Day in the country on September 30. This day also traditionally marks the start of the voting process for the best Internet project in the country that will be determined by the most amount of votes by  the second half of November.

Russia: Landscape and Trends of Online Transparency Initiatives

RuNet Echo  30 September 2010

Alexey Sidorenko analyzes the five main groups of the Russian transparency projects: official and semi-official transparency websites; chaotic transparency communities; online representation of civil activism NGOs; next-generation transparency and civil rights activism social networks; and Ushahidi-based projects.

Russia: “Web of Justice”

RuNet Echo  29 September 2010

The Russian Internet is presented, especially in some Western media, as being one of the few democratic forums in the country. However, these reports should be taken with a grain of salt, as it is still unclear just how much of Internet freedom the government is willing to tolerate.

Europe: “Mapping Stereotypes”

  28 September 2010

Via Dr Sean's Diary, “a series of maps of Europe mapping the (supposed) prejudices of various nations […] and, for some reason, also of gay men” by “Bulgarian visual artist, graphic designer and illustrator Yanko Tsvetkov.” Also, “What European Tribes Think About One Another” – at eXile.ru; a similar map...

Russia: Moscow Mayor's Dismissal

RuNet Echo  28 September 2010

Today, the main topic of all discussions in the RuNet is the dismissal of Yuri Luzhkov, mayor of Moscow. While some bloggers (1 [RUS], 2 [RUS]) consider it a victory of the opposition, others say, nothing had changed [RUS] – mayor's team is on it's place. Zyalt posts [RUS] pictures...

Russia, Czech Republic: “The Velvet Surrender”

  28 September 2010

Robert Amsterdam's blog links to an investigative report by Gregory Feifer and Brian Whitmore, published in the New Republic (full text available to subscribers only, however), which examines “Russia's ambitious nuclear diplomacy and foreign policy with the Czech Republic.”

Russia: Moscow Mayor Luzhkov Fired

RuNet Echo  28 September 2010

Notes on the sacking of Moscow mayor Yuri Luzhkov: before (The Moscow Diaries and FP's Passport) and after (A Good Treaty, The Russia Monitor, Robert Amsterdam, Russia! and Windows to Russia).

Russia: Search for Liza Fomkina and Her Aunt

RuNet Echo  27 September 2010

On her blog and in a Moscow News column, Natalia Antonova writes about the search for Liza Fomkina and her aunt, who went missing in a town near Moscow on Sept. 13, and whose bodies were found last week: “According to RIA Novosti, the main search and rescue efforts were...

Russia: Controversy On Twitter Use in the Government

RuNet Echo  27 September 2010

Russian General Prosecutor's Office registered [RUS] a Twitter-account @genproc [RUS]. Previously [RUS], Federal Anti-monopoly Service got @rus_fas [RUS] account. While more than 20 high [RUS] Russian officials already started tweeting, country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs is sceptical about the new media which it considers an “information weapon.”

Belarus President Refused to Start a Blog

RuNet Echo  27 September 2010

Blogger pilgrim-67 sarcastically comments [RUS] on Alexander Lukashenko's decision not to start a blog [RUS]: “That's a pity. I would be excited to read about Belarus cows and gaz wars in his blog […] I think his blog would be more lively than Medvedev's.”

Russia, Poland: “The Fog Surrounding the Crash Remains”

  22 September 2010

Streetwise Professor writes about the ongoing inquiry into the April 10 plane crash that killed the Polish president and 95 others, reporting this, among other things: “Most peculiarly, the air traffic controller who was in charge when the plane crashed ‘retired’ three days after the crash, and Russian authorities claim...

Russia: Medvedev's “Chutzpah”

RuNet Echo  22 September 2010

At The Huffington Post, Simon Shuster urges PM Putin to ask himself where President Medvedev got “such chutzpah”: “[Medvedev] is seen as having his own agenda for reforms, independent and vaguely appealing, a westernizer, you see, like a fun-sized Peter the Great.”