Russia's Howard Beale Moment?
Must-see viewing for anyone with even a passing interest in Russia or the muzzling of the free press.
It's Leonid Parfenov -- a popular former NTV host who was fired in June 2004 for violating his employment agreement, which obligated him "to support the company leadership" -- speaking at a ceremony for an award named after slain journalist Vladislav Listyev.
He begins with a reference to the latest operation on journalist Oleg Kashin, who was savagely beaten by unknown assailants, and goes on to indict a situation in which Russia's political leadership serves as puppetmaster and independent media are ruthlessly extirpated.
image adapted from original copyright (c) 2010. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036 http://www.rferl.org
We're looking into the accuracy of the translation and other circumstances -- for instance, the claim that the speech was censored and didn't air in its entirety:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGiTvatqcT4
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