{"id":11416,"date":"2022-05-19T11:55:45","date_gmt":"2022-05-19T08:55:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/longreads\/regime-failing-to-weed-out-media-field-ensure-propaganda-dominance\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"regime-failing-to-weed-out-media-field-ensure-propaganda-dominance","status":"publish","type":"longreads","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11416\/","title":{"rendered":"Regime failing to weed out media field, ensure propaganda dominance"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n\t * Reproduction prohibited\n<\/p>\n

\n One year ago, on May 18, law enforcement officers raided tut.by offices, arresting more than dozen employees. Authorities have been trying to silence Na\u0161a Niva, BelaPAN and other critical media in an attempt to amplify state propaganda. Some Belarusian media outlets have moved abroad to cover developments in their country safely without censorship.<\/b>\n<\/p>\n

\n\t A March poll conducted by Andrej Vardamacki\u2019s team found that 32 percent of Belarusians consider Belarusian state television networks an important source of information on developments in the country. Other important news sources included Russian state TV channels (26 percent), non-state news sites (12 percent) and state news sites (nine percent).\n<\/p>\n

Regime weeding out media field<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t Although the survey apparently shows state media dominance in Belarus, the real picture is mixed.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Obviously, the crackdown has helped state propaganda, which disseminates the Kremlin\u2019s narratives, gain some ground on the private media.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t On the other hand, the poll found that 33 percent use the Telegram messenger application and 30 percent use Youtube as important sources of information. Telegram and Youtube are the tools successfully used by independent journalists, bloggers and opinion leaders critical of the Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka regime.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t A Chatham House online poll conducted in March proved considerable influence of the independent media. It showed that 22 percent of Belarusians living in cities and towns relied on Belarusian non-state media for news on developments in Ukraine, while 43 percent followed Belarusian non-state media. The state-media scored 20 percent and 39 percent, respectively.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The Belarusians are living in the two separate information environments, a Chatham House analyst concluded. Most Belarusians are not interested in hearing the opponent\u2019s point of view because it can cause mental discomfort.\n<\/p>\n

Non-state media adapting to persecution<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t The polls showed only a slight decrease in the audience of independent media, which was just over the margin of error, said Pa\u016dliuk Byko\u016dski, a Belarusian political analyst. On the other hand, the state media have failed to expand their audiences, he added.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He admitted that many Belarusians find it difficult to bypass government-imposed restrictions on access to critical media. Authorities have banned dozens of media outlets, branding critics as extremist content and extremist groups.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Speaking at the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit in Moscow on May 16, the Belarusian leader urged the CSTO member states to adopt Chinese methods \u201cof information struggle, especially on the Internet.\u201d Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan may ignore his appeal, while Minsk has already made considerable progress in online censorship and seems determined to continue along that path.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The regime\u2019s media policy is fraught with risks and challenges for the independent media.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Some Belarusian outlets were forced to set up operations abroad. Na\u0161a Niva is now based in Vilnius. A part of the tut.by team moved to Kyiv to launch Zerkalo, but the Russian invasion forced them to relocate to Lithuania and Poland.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Narodnaja Volia, Onliner, Infa Kur\u2019er and Intex Press remain in Belarus but \u201chave been more cautious\u201d in their reporting, Byko\u016dski said.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Some media operate from several locations. Executives, editors and most prominent journalists are based abroad, while support services and advertisers stayed in Belarus.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The relocated media rely on verified user-generated content, he noted.\n<\/p>\n

Groups of Belarusians living in information bubbles<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t The government crackdown has done some damage to the independent media but has not given state propaganda a big advantage.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Media critical of the regime have adapted to the hostile environment and continue to adhere to high professional standards. The persecuted media workers have received support from democracy and media advocacy groups.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The Chatham House poll found a higher percentage of respondents confident of Ukraine\u2019s victory among independent media readers than among those who use Belarusian and Russian state media as the primary sources of information. \u201cThe rhetoric of an information source can influence opinions on who will win the armed conflict,\u201d Chatham House concluded.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t It is not that the source is crucial for forming an opinion, it is more that people\u2019s mindset prompts them to choose certain sources of information. It is difficult for the media to reach out to people with prejudiced and one-sided mindsets.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t One way or another, it is clear that the two groups of Belarusians live in their separate information bubbles.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Tut.by should be credited for getting its message across to people with different mindsets. Its influence on undecided voters was one of the reasons political winds turned sharply against the Belarusian government in 2020. That is why tut.by tops the government\u2019s enemy list.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t But the government has failed to weed out the media field. Belarusian independent media continue their mission despite the tough conditions.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t  <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN * Reproduction prohibited One year ago, on May 18, law enforcement officers raided tut.by offices, arresting more than dozen employees. Authorities have been trying to silence Na\u0161a Niva, BelaPAN and other critical media in an attempt to amplify state propaganda. Some Belarusian media outlets have moved abroad to cover developments in […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[22],"class_list":["post-11416","longreads","type-longreads","status-publish","hentry","rubric-theviewer"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nRegime failing to weed out media field, ensure propaganda dominance | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN * Reproduction prohibited One year ago, on May 18, law enforcement officers raided tut.by offices, arresting more than dozen\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11416\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Regime failing to weed out media field, ensure propaganda dominance | 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