“One Continuous Grief”: The Russian Audience, Terrorism, and Elections

Abstract

One of the most striking findings in the comparative study of U.S. and Russian audiences and the coverage of terrorism has been the observation that citizens of these two diverse countries sometimes sound a lot like each other. Both Russians and Americans expressed passionate fear and insecurity about terrorism—and both looked to their leaders and nation in times of security crisis. Yet, evidence from the study of Russian citizens suggests that the linkage of fear, politics, and nationhood is more enduring for Russians. Part of this was apparent from how Russians talked about security and politics in general in a series of focus groups, expressing support for measures ranging from the need for more secret police to a return to purges. In addition, it was clear that most Russians in the focus groups were quite comfortable with the notion of the permanent exchange of civil liberties for the chance of greater personal security. Underlying this, though, would appear to be a fundamentally different relationship among the electorate, politicians, and the media in Russia than in the United States or Great Britain. As a series of 34 focus groups in 2000 and 2004 suggest, Russians do not expect their media or their politicians to aggregate or even articulate their political will. They anticipate that their leaders will rule the country with “strong hands” and they accept a sense of benevolent despotism.