В.Путин.Выступление на церемонии открытия.05.06.06.Part 2

Speech at Opening Ceremony of the 59th World Newspaper Congress.Part 2 June 5,2006 State Kremlin Palace,Moscow Выступление на церемонии открытия 59-го Всемирного газетного конгресса 5 июня 2006 года Москва, Государственный Кремлевский дворец Peoples views of the world and their life and career priorities have also changed. These immense transformations would not have been possible without a free press. Here in this audience I would like to underscore how the press has played not just an important but an irreplaceable role in forming the new Russia.Our people made a conscious choice in favour of democracy. Freedom of the media remains one of the most important guarantees of this choice. This is our valued achievement and it has been fixed by the Constitution of the Russian Federation. As for our Law on Mass Media, adopted back in 1991, it is recognised as one of the most liberal in the world. It is clear that civilised development of the mass media depends not only on the state, which sets the legislative rules. Also of great importance is the ability of journalists, editors and publishers to organise themselves. The economic organisations that finance the activities of newspapers and magazines and the commercial success of publications themselves can also have a huge impact on editorial policy.The 1990s was a period that saw capital from all sources arrive on the emerging Russian media market. Sometimes this capital came from sources that hardly qualify as transparent. And the owners of this capital often had their own interests to pursue, interests far removed from the publics demands. This issue was just spoken about before. I would like to confirm the words that we just heard and say that freedom of the press at that time in Russia was indeed under threat, not from the former state ideology that once held a monopoly on expression, but from the dictates of oligarchic capital. This was a critically difficult period for journalists and for the chief editors. It was a difficult period for all of Russian society and for Russian democracy.The Russian press has now gathered solid experience of working in a competitive market environment. Of course, learning how to competently combine media ideals and a flourishing commercial enterprise is no easy task.Many countries face similar problems. The search for a balance of interests between journalists, business, the state and society is going on everywhere. After all, an economically independent and socially responsible press is a condition and guarantee for the fair and progressive development of society.Mention was also made here of low levels of trust in the media in some countries, including in Russia.Dear colleagues, state decisions alone are not enough to raise public trust in the press. The press itself must become responsible.From year to year increasingly favourable conditions are emerging in Russia for media development. One of these conditions is economic growth and an increase in peoples living standards.In terms of gross domestic product growth, Russia has been among the world leaders for several years now. We now have the opportunity to carry out large-scale national projects and resolve urgent problems in education, healthcare, agriculture, housing construction and a number of other areas.The media market in Russia is also demonstrating its immense potential. It is one of the recognised world leaders in terms of growth today. Investment in the periodicals market exceeds $1 billion a year. This is a solid figure for Russia.Of course, when competition is tough media companies change their strategies. More and more media companies are developing as multi-profile holdings. Mr OReilly [President of the World Association of Newspapers] spoke about the increasing state presence in the media. I have different information on this point. The states share in the Russian press market is decreasing all the time. This is easy to verify. The number of publications, meanwhile, is constantly on the increase.Of course, as in practically any other country in the world, here too there is a constant battle going on between the state and its interests, as understood by civil servants, the public and the press. This is the case in almost all countries, indeed, I would say in all countries, including in Russia. But I think you will agree with me that in a country that today counts 53,000 periodical publications, we could not control them all even if we wanted to. Even if the state had such a desire it would be impossible. There are more than 3,000 TV and radio companies in Russia. Of course, we do have our problems nonetheless. What is really impressive is the diversity and quantity of the regional press, which the experts say readers tend to prefer.

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