Perestroika Photo-Reports in the Daily Newspaper Sovetskaya Rossiya

For citation: Krasheninnikova M.A. (2017) «Perestroechnyy» fotoreportazh v ezhednevnoy gazete «Sovetskaya Rossiya» [Perestroika Photo-Reports in the Daily Newspaper Sovetskaya Rossiya]. Mediaskop 4. (in Russian). Available at: http://www.mediascope.ru/2387

© Maria A. Krasheninnikova
PhD, Lecturer at the Chair of New Media and Theory of Communication, Faculty of Journalism, Lomonosov Moscow State University (Moscow, Russia), mashagarnova@gmail.com

Abstract

Sovetskaya Rossiyais a daily socio-political newspaper, which content (including visual elements) reflected socio-political transformations during the period of Perestroika in 1985−1991. The newspaper Sovetskaya Rossiya made an emphasis on photo-reports in the period of Perestroika. This was facilitated by the work of the head of the illustrations department V.N. Shina and his followers. Experts consider the period of his work in Sovetskaya Rossiya(1980−1986) to be the heyday of photojournalism in the newspaper.

The author analyzed 93 photo-reports from 2048 issues of the newspaper Sovetskaya Rossiyapublished during the period from 23.04.1985 until 26.12.1991.

The great majority of photos were made in Moscow. In the Sovietskaya Rossiyanewspaper of the Perestroika period photo-reports were mainly devoted to the holidays − the publication gave preference to events of a ritual nature significant in Soviet culture (both of the all-Union and local significance). Another widely covered topic in those years was political problematics. In the second half of the period under research, the changes occurred in the photo-reports in the newspaper - the pictures acquired liveliness, dynamics. All that was a consequence of the processes that took place in the media at that time (greater openness, easing of censorship restrictions, etc.).

Photo-reports in Sovetskaya Rossiyatargeted mass audience. That was reflected in the choice of the displayed heroes: the pictures included athletes, participants of amateur competitions, artists and amateur performances' representatives, ordinary citizens. However, they were all depersonalized. The only personalized hero of photo-reports was the head of state. At the same time, during several years of Perestroika, there have also been changes in the representation of the image of the state leader − M.S. Gorbachev. From the traditional and habitual display in full-face the authors of photo-reports gradually shifted in the direction of photographing more of free phases of the movement of the Secretary General of the Central Committee of the CPSU.

Keywords: photojournalism, photos, the newspaper Sovetskaya Rossiya, the USSR.

Note

«Pravda» Eduarda Zhigaylova: cherez ob"ektiv [Pravdaof Eduard Zhigailov: through the lens]. Pravda.ru, 2012, June 5. Available at:  http://www.pravda.ru/society/05-06-2012/1117155-zhigaylov-0/ (aссessed: 01.07.2016).

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