Here is an ad on Russian TV announcing an up-coming press conference with the president of Russia:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xai7ttzbx5M
And this is how smart people hype up their presidents.
Here is an article on this and other similar videos.
Thank you, reader Tim, for this great link.
Clarissa's Blog 
Contrast it with the U.S, where the networks treat official press conferences as a chore.
Although from the linked article, it looks like they’re very worried that nobody inside will watch what Putin says about the free-fall of the ruble. I didn’t get the message in the video here that Putin was going to do anything from that jumble of disasters, Olympians, scenery and action movie music.
I’m not sure how much context I’m missing because I don’t speak or read Russian, but propaganda like that doesn’t work on a verbal level.
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We all know how I feel about Putin, but even I experienced a warm and fuzzy feeling towards him during the video.
Putin is going to tell everybody during the conference how everything that is happening is a good thing for Russia. And everybody will feel happy and proud.
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I kinda understand treating press conferences as a chore. Press conferences of the higher ups usually feel like pre-approved encounters wherein pre-approved speakers say pre-approved sentences in a pre-approved room to the same buch of pre-approved journalists that will ask pre-approved questions for which they will get pre-approved answers.
They are basically on the same choreographic level as school plays, only with worse actors.
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Question at Radio Erevan: Do Russians believe in Santa Claus?
Answer: In principle, no. In politics, yes.
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\ We all know how I feel about Putin, but even I experienced a warm and fuzzy feeling towards him during the video.
Makes me feel better about my feelings. That I am not some kind of a “special” enough person to fall under the spell during the video.
I haven’t understood something: we see EU flag being burnt, are bad guys doing that or good guys? Who are they? It’s ironic if Putin shows the video bit to demonstrate how he’ll protect Russians from savages who … burn EU flags.
\ And this is how smart people hype up their presidents.
At first, I thought you meant “smart,” but if you really meant smart, would you like USA channels to make a show out of each conference?
In Israel, there are no such videos, as far as I know. However, during military operations, everybody catches every word anyway.
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What’s more ironic, the video starts with the images of the Ukrainian revolution when Ukrainians threw out their own corrupt president. Plus there are more American flags in the video than Russian.
In the US there is only one state channel, it has very few resources and is not hugely popular. In Russia all channels are state channels.
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—What’s more ironic, the video starts with the images of the Ukrainian revolution when Ukrainians threw out their own corrupt president.
It is not ironic at all if you look at it from Putin’s and his propaganda-men viewpoint. Half of the video sequence illustrates the world in turmoil. Catastrophes, terrorism, wars, civil unrest, legitimate governments being overthrown by armed thugs backed by the Americans (I hope you understand I am being sarcastic here), etc. (I must admit I did not quite get this burning of the EU flag thing too.) And the second half illustrates Russian achievements – in sports, space exploration, etc. So Russia, led by Putin, is the proud guardian of the world, protecting it from total collapse.
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If it doesn’t give you too much of a headache, could you actually watch the press conference and give a short summary? Pretty please?
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Never mind. I saw the stream with the english translator and it was… contentless.
I also learned that Putin is a bear otherkin.
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Yes, I’m planning to watch. I’m into Schadenfreude a lot. 🙂
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I actually have a problem with the last sentence of the article: “TV is the only force that can unify and rule and bind this country. It’s the central mechanism of a new type of authoritarianism, one far subtler than twentieth-century strains.”
This sounds as if TV wiping up patriotic or militaristic hysteria is something new or specific to Russia. Where did Bush’s 70% ratings of 2003 (both personal and the approval rating for the war in Iraq) come from? Is 70% fundamentally, qualitatively, different from Putin’s 84%?
P.S. I lived in the US from 1999 to 2005, so I have the first-hand knowledge of what was shown on American TV at that time.
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“This sounds as if TV wiping up patriotic or militaristic hysteria is something new or specific to Russia. Where did Bush’s 70% ratings of 2003 (both personal and the approval rating for the war in Iraq) come from? Is 70% fundamentally, qualitatively, different from Putin’s 84%?”
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— And where is such a recent trauma among Russians?
Collapse of the SU and of the Russian sphere of influence. Yes, it was a longer time ago. But propaganda can keep such woulds alive and/or open them anew even if they are partially healed. This phenomenon is not specific to Russia. I am coming from a country where everything bad is still explained by the consequences of Russian occupation…
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wounds, not woulds
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I do believe there is an enormous difference between a symbolic, imaginary “wound” and the trauma of an actual act of terror where thousands died. We all saw the USSR collapse but only the Russians are constantly invading.
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No, there is not difference. “Imagined” quality of the wound is completely in the eyes of the beholder. Soznanie opredeljaet bytie.
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Of course, there is no difference for the sufferer. But there is a difference for me who is advancing an external judgment.
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