Was It Russian Public Television That Won It?

Abstract

A nationally representative survey conducted immediately after the December 1999 Russian Duma election indicates that national television was the most important source of news for voters and that there were few differences between the party supporters in their patterns of viewing. Voters for the pro-Kremlin Unity party, however, were the most likely to say they had been influenced by state television, and regression analysis indicates that state television was by far the most important of all the variables that contributed to their voting choices. The Russian Duma election accordingly provides a striking illustration of the extent to which a determined regime can resist a challenge to its authority by using its control of the media, particularly state television.