The Russian-American writer Julia Ioffi wrote last week in the New Republic, 鈥淲henever the U.S. pointed to Soviet human rights violations, the Soviet鈥檚 had an easy riposte - 鈥榳ell, you lynch Negros.鈥欌��
That鈥檚 consistent with what I recall while working in the Soviet Union in the decades of the Cold War. Any time Russians were accused of human rights abuses, they would immediately counter with their own accusations of the racist treatment of African-Americans in the United States. Russia had its own racist attitudes toward any group not ethnically Russian. But it's Cold War strategy was to strongly support anti-colonialist revolutionaries, particularly in Africa, and made a virtue of this.
Fast forward to 2014. The message and the means of distributing it, have become much more sophisticated. Robert Mackey of the New York Times, has put together a report on how some of America鈥檚 harshest critics are reporting the events of Ferguson.
Mackey writes:
鈥淲hile the unrest has also shocked American observers and foreign correspondents from other Western Democracies 鈥� including British and German reporters who have been struck by the 鈥榮ounds of battle鈥� and (themselves) endured arrest 鈥� some of the most strident criticism of police violence in Ferguson has come from authoritarian nations where the police are often venerated and dissent is scarcely tolerated.鈥� Iran, Egypt and China are included in Mackey鈥檚 report, but Russia is the main focus.
Citing New York Times reporters in Moscow and elsewhere, Mackey singles out the main, government controlled channel Rossiya 24 as covering Ferguson with, what he calls - neo-Soviet zeal. One of its anchors told Russian viewers on Tuesday that 鈥渢he situation in Ferguson was veering close to civil war."
This over-the top coverage is also to be seen on the network Russia Today, which is Kremlin funded and targets international viewers with broadcasts in English, Spanish and Arabic. One of the stars reporting from the quote 鈥渨ar zone鈥� unquote on the English language version of Russia Today, is correspondent Anastasia Chirkina - who just happens to be the daughter of Vitali Churkin, the current Russian Ambassador to the United Nations.
But the Russian official who appears to be leading the anti-American charge is Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian foreign ministry鈥檚 commissioner for human rights, democracy and rule of law. He is being widely quoted everywhere including on his ministry鈥檚 Twitter feed. Among his observations - quote,
鈥淲hile urging other countries to guarantee the freedom of speech and not to suppress anti-government protests, the United States authorities at home are not too soft with those actively expressing discontent over persistent inequalities, actual discrimination and the situation of 鈥榮econd class鈥� citizens.鈥� unquote
There may be elements of truth in such critiques 鈥� but coming from a country which now, once again effectively bans street protests and puts prominent bloggers and dissidents in jail - this return to old Soviet propaganda tactics is troubling, not least because it shows just how significantly the once promising post-Cold War American-Russian relationship has disintegrated.
