Russia's "McCain-Feingold" act at work.

When "ex"-KGB officer Vladimir Putin came to power in 1999, "Russia had what approximated to an independent media," notes media critic Stephen Glover in the September 11 issue of The Spectator of London. "Now all television channels and nearly all newspapers are controlled directly or indirectly by the Kremlin.... The country's last independent television channel was shut down last year on the pretext of financial insolvency."

As necessary, Putin's regime reverts to Brezhnev-era censorship measures. When Izvestia asked pointed questions about the government's actions in the recent terrorist horror at a school in Beslan, North Ossetia, Putin reacted "by securing the dismissal of the editor of Izvestia, Raf Shakirov." Additionally, "two Russian journalists with independent views on Chechnya were not even allowed to get to Beslan." One was arrested and jailed for five days; the other mysteriously took ill during a flight to the region after being served tea.

Another important weapon wielded by Putin against the media is the Russian version of the McCain-Feingold "campaign finance reform" law. Signed in 2002 by President Bush (who had promised to veto any measure of the sort that constricts freedom of speech), the law places severe restrictions on political speech--via advertisements and other public messages--that mentions political candidates within an election period. This has the effect of strengthening the power of the Establishment's media cartel to shape public views of issues and candidates during the period when most Americans are most interested in them. It also works to the benefit of incumbent politicians, rather than challengers.

Russia's version of McCain-Feingold, as described by Glover, is even more draconian. "A law passed last summer threatens newspapers with closure if, during an election period, they express any opinion about a politician's policies, his campaign or his personality. Intimidated by these and other new laws, many newspaper journalists practice self-censorship." Having strangled Russia's independent media in the crib, Putin is using the state-controlled media to cultivate a personality cult: "Television cameras follow Putin slavishly around Russia, portraying him in a heroic light."