I was initially drawn to the idea of making a film about Russian journalism two years ago when I watched televised reports of the protests outside the Ostankino television building in Moscow. Television journalists and managers from NTV, which was then led by American Boris Jordan, were protesting against its takeover by the giant Gazprom industrial conglomerate. Jordan has since been deposed and all major television stations in Russia brought under state control.
Russian Media: Stories Too Far
Dozens of journalists have been murdered in Russia since Glasnost. Very few cases have been solved by the authorities. The country has been ranked amongst the worst in the world for media freedom. Television director Paul Jenkins set out to record the problems of a provincial newspaper that had lost its editor in this shooting spree. The evidence uncovered has produced deep disquiet about the future for Russian journalists and for Russia itself.
