The Russian Television Industry in the Global Age
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Moscow Goes Hollywood: The Russian Television Industry in the Global Age by Jeffrey R. Brassard A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Sociology University of Alberta © Jeffrey R. Brassard, 2017 Abstract This study examines ways that both authoritarian capitalism and global flows of culture have shaped the Russian television industry. This dissertation explores three main questions: How does the system of state-directed capitalism shape television production, particularly with regards to balancing propaganda and profit? What kinds of representations are possible on television in Russia under authoritarian capitalism? What is the relationship of the Russian television industry with other parts of the global media industry? To explore these questions, this dissertation examines the structure of the Russian television industry with particular attention given to the most important channels and production companies. In all cases, the relationship of these companies to both the Putin-led state and their level of integration with the global television marketplace is examined in-depth. Using a mix of semi-structured interviews with industry workers, analysis of industry trade journals, popular press and textual analysis, this dissertation examines four of the main television stations in the country all of whom have different relationships to the state. I argue that typical accounts of Russian media as merely serving the interests of the state are overly simplistic. The expectation that television channels or production companies linked to the ruling elite create programming that supports the Putin government’s nation-building efforts while commercial stations use their platforms to criticize the status-quo is shown to be erroneous. State-owned and state-affiliated stations whose leadership has strong ties to Putin’s inner circle often produce programming that represents key Russian institutions negatively while commercial networks generally produce apolitical programing unlikely to attract the attention of the state. Along with the internal dynamics of the Russian industry, this dissertation ii examines the role that global media have played in the development of the Russian television industry in the post-Soviet era. The role of major western media companies in post-Soviet Russia is explored through a case study of Sony Television’s expansion into Russia in the 2000s. This dissertation argues that contrary to theories of cultural imperialism prominent in the fields of political economy and cultural studies, the global television industry’s strongest influence has not been in spreading Western values to Russia, but instead transferring industrial and production practices. Therefore, this project significantly complicates notions of how television industries function in an authoritarian capitalist state, with important implications for those examining media in other states with similar systems. iii Preface This thesis is an original work by Jeffrey Brassard. The research project, of which this thesis is a part, received research ethics approval from the University of Alberta Research Ethics Board, Project Name “Moscow Goes Hollywood: The Russian Television Industry in the Global Age”, No. Pro00039744, 03/07/2013. iv For Michelle, I could not have done this without you. v Acknowledgements Having spent seven years in the Department of Sociology, many people have shaped my journey and my dissertation project. I am very thankful for my family, friends, and the community of scholars at the University of Alberta for their help and support over what proved to be a much longer and much more difficult path than I originally anticipated. This degree and all of your inputs and support have helped me to find my voice as a scholar and shaped who I am as an academic. Thank you to my wonderful supervisory committee - Zohreh BayatRizi, Elena Siemens, and William Anselmi – I appreciate the work that you have put into my project. Your enthusiasm and your suggestions of ways to improve my scholarship were invaluable. Thank you, also to Dr. David Marples and Dr. Dana Heller for agreeing to review my work. I am deeply appreciative that you took the time to read and evaluate this project. Elena, it is unusual for a student to have had such a long and positive relationship with a professor. You have seen me through three degrees, written me countless letters of recommendation and been there to offer wise council and support when this long, arduous process was threatening to go off the rails. Though you are not technically my supervisor, you did more to support this project than anyone else, and I am eternally grateful to you for everything. In the end, I think of you as an honorary supervisor. Thank you, I am indebted to you in ways I can never hope to repay. Zohreh, I deeply appreciate you taking on this project at the stage that you did. Coming into a project that late cannot have been easy. I very much appreciate your patience with me and your courage in entering a situation that was complex even though simply passing it on to someone else might have been a great deal easier. I am grateful vi for your help in getting this project across the finish line as quickly as you did. I am without a doubt in your debt. I am also grateful to the Department of Sociology at the University of Alberta for their support through this process. This department is a wonderful place to be a graduate student. I have yet to meet a professor in the department who was not kind and helpful to students. I would like to extend a special thank you to Dr. Sara Dorow and Dr. Amy Kaler. When I thought this project was dead in the water, and that it might never end you both went to great pains to get everything back on track. I cannot thank either of you enough for stewarding me through the darkest hours of my graduate career with grace and compassion. I am in your debts as well. I would also like to thank the administrative staff of the department, particularly Pamela Minty and Nancy Evans. It’s obvious to everybody in the department that you do more to keep everything running smoothly than anyone else. You do not get nearly enough credit for all the work you do, but I want you to know that it is noticed and appreciated. I also want to thank Dr. Lisa Strohschien for giving me so many wonderful opportunities to teach in the department during my time here. Not only did this allow me to support myself financially, but it was also a wonderful experience. I appreciate the confidence that you have shown in me, even when I was teaching well outside my area of expertise. I’ve benefitted greatly from broadening my perspectives. I am also deeply indebted to all of the people who helped me establish contacts in the industry and made this a much deeper and richer process. I am especially grateful to Dr. David Craig at UCLA who after a chance meeting at SCMS generously shared his industry contacts with me with no strings attached. You represent the best part of the vii academic tradition of collaboration, and this project would not have been the same without your help. Ben Hall, a whirlwind trip to Moscow for an industry conference was well worth meeting you and having you introduce me to numerous people in the Russian media industries. I am deeply grateful to you for having put me in touch with people who offered valuable insight into the Russian television industry. To all of the people I interviewed: Marc Lorber, Simon Tucker, Dan Berbridge, Mike Montgommery and those who chose to remain anonymous, thank you for sharing your experiences with me. The project is what it is because of all of you. I would also briefly like to thank the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council and the Government of Alberta for their financial contributions to this project. Having a stable funding base during the first five years made this project possible. My sincere appreciation also goes to Nobuo Uematsu, Yoko Shimomura, Taylor Davis, Rend Collective and Hillsong United who provided the soundtrack to my studies and the writing of this dissertation. Great music makes the process less painful. I want to thank my friends and family for their love and support. Bryce and Dorothy, my fellow travelers along the graduate highway, I always knew I could count on you when I needed to complain. I am thankful that you encouraged me to stick up for myself and that I finally listened. Kelsey, thanks for being there through endless text message sessions when I needed to talk during the day even though I am sure you had better things to do. I have no truer friend than you. For my parents, Ray and Marthe, thank you for your encouragement and support, especially in taking care of the kids when they were little and always taking them when they are sick so that I can still get some viii work done. I am lucky to have such wonderful parents who, have always supported my goals, no matter how crazy you might think they are. And of course, thank you to my children Katya and Pascal. You both can cheer me up when I have had a rough day like nothing else can. Last, but not least, I want to thank my beautiful wife, Michelle. I am so lucky to have you and that you support all my goals. You always encourage me not to let the doubts creep in, but rather to focus on whatever is true, noble, right, pure, lovely, admirable, excellent and praiseworthy. We have sacrificed a lot so that I could get to this point.