Media Control in Eastern Europe: Holding the Tide on Opposition

摘要

For the communist leadership of Eastern Europe, control of the media's messages is a critical part of rule. For the populations over which they rule, access to that media and to true and comprehensive information is equally central. For the Soviet Union, tolerance of regimes in Eastern Europe requires that they maintain a media which does not openly challenge either the primacy of the Soviet Union or the leading role of the Party. As a result, conflicts in these societies always center around access to the mass media. When control by the communist leadership has diminished or been lost, the media transforms itself. And, when the media no longer reflect the leadership of the communist elite, liberalization has been brought to an end as a result of this and other moves away from Soviet control that the media reports. (Author)