Publication of “Special Public Interest” The German Government and the Russian Media at the Time of the Establishment of the Weimar Republic (in accordance with documents of the German Federal Archive and the archive of the State of Berlin)

For citation: Lysenko A.V. (2016) V fokuse «osobogo obshchestvennogo znacheniya»: germanskaya vlast' i russkie emigrantskie SMI v period stanovleniya Veymarskoy respubliki (po materialam Federal'nogo arkhiva Germanii i Zemel'nogo arkhiva Berlina) [Publication of “Special Public Interest” The German Government and the Russian Media at the Time of the Establishment of the Weimar Republic (in accordance with documents of the German Federal Archive and the archive of the State of Berlin)]. Mediaskop 2. Available at: http://www.mediascope.ru/?q=node/2091

© Artem V. Lysenko

PhD, Researcher at the Chair of Foreign Journalism and Literature, Faculty of Journalism, Lomonosov Moscow State University (Moscow, Russia),artem.v.lysenko@gmail.com

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to show the specifics of the relationship between the German government and the media in Berlin during the formation of the Weimar Republic and the development of its new liberal values. We hereby publish archival material that shows and, to a certain extent, confirms the correlation between the governmental support of Russian print media and the success of these publications. From the government’s point of view, these media performed two useful functions: they served the development and organization of a community of emigrants and were occasional source of information about this community.

The government’s new policy regarding mass media in the Weimar Republic required a broader outreach, but was carried out by people who still relied on past experiences and long-established principles, particularly those associated with Bismarck. This attitude together with the new technological advances have greatly influenced the very particular understanding of the freedom of the press in the economically unstable Weimar Republic. The analysed documents have revealed certain patterns that enable us to draw parallels to the relationship between the government and the press in today’s Germany. These patterns include the governmental support of the media that is considered important for society, the accessibility of media that is controversial, allowing for the publication of diverse opinions, oppositional political views and criticism, as well as the possibility to admit to and correct mistakes.

Keywords: Russian Berlin, Russian media in Germany, Russian emigration, the publishing industry in the Weimar republic, Bismarck’s “literary bureau”, German Ministry of Foreign Affairs, media politics.

Note

Bundesarchiv. [The Federal Archives] R. 131, R 901, R/1501.

Reference

Struve G. (1996) Russkaya literatura v izgnanii [Russian Literature in Exile]. Paris; Moscow: YMCA-Press; Russkiy put' Publ.