Pravda.ru

For other uses, see Pravda (disambiguation).

Pravda.ru (Russian: Правда.Ру, lit. 'truth') formerly Pravda Online, is a Russian news website established in 1999 and owned by Pravda.ru Holding headed by Vadim Gorshenin.^[1]

Pravda.ru

Type of site	Online newspaper
Available in	Russian English Portuguese French
Owner	CJSC "Pravda.ru"
Editor	Dmitry Sudakov
URL	www.pravda.ru
Commercial	Yes
Launched	January 27, 1999 (23 years ago) (1999-01-27)
Current status	Active

History

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, the oldest Soviet paper founded in 1912, Pravda, split into two different papers. Significant members of the main editorial staff (Viktor Afanasiev, Gennady Seleznev, Yuri Zhukov, Vera Tkachenko and Vadim Gorshenin) left Pravda to form the online news and opinion website Pravda.ru.^[2] Following a court case the Pravda name was allowed to be used by both the newspaper owned by the Communist Party of Russia and the pro-Putin Pravda.ru run by journalists associated with the defunct Soviet Pravda.^[3][4]

According to politologist Stanislav Belkovsky, Pravda.ru is controlled by Konstantin Kostin and his wife Olga Kostina.^[5] The Russian politician, Sergey Veremeenko also holds interests in Pravda.ru and Pravda International.^[6] Pravda.ru was registered in November 1999 and has been published since January 27, 1999.^[7] Pravda.ru also launched an English version (english.pravda.ru), a Portuguese version, as well as an Italian version.^[8] The printed version was registered by the Ministry of the Russian Federation for Press, TV and Radio Broadcasting and Mass Communications on 17 November 2003.^[9]

In 2007 Pravda.ru was classified as a popular leftist, nationalist news website by the Federation of American Scientists.^[10]

McCain controversy

In 2013, after Russian President Vladimir Putin published an op-ed on The New York Times in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad,^[11] US senator John McCain announced that he would publish a response article on Pravda, referring to the Communist newspaper. McCain, however, eventually published his op-ed on Pravda.ru.^[12] This caused protests from the editor of Communist Pravda Boris Komotsky and a response from the editor of Pravda.ru Dmitry Sudakov: Komotsky claimed that "there is only one Pravda in Russia, it is the organ of the Communist Party, and we have heard nothing about the intentions of the Republican senator" and dismissed Pravda.ru as an "Oklahoma-City-Pravda", while Sudakov derided Komotsky, claiming that "the circulation of the Communist Party Pravda is like a factory newspaper of AvtoVAZ from the Soviet times".^[13][14][15] McCain later attempted to publish his op-ed on the Communist Pravda as well, but the paper refused to publish it, since it was not aligned to the political positions of the Communist Party of the Russian Federation.^[16]

Controversy

The organization has been accused of supporting the Russian government's position on various subjects both within and outside the country and also of producing neo-Soviet, Russian nationalist news and outright conspiracy theories. The media outlet which is a part of a larger pro-Kremlin media holding is said to have created an algorithm for vetting media outlets in terms of their pro-government ideological standing.^[17]

Pravda.ru has been known to produce tabloid style articles with outrageous claims in the headline, such as

• “Aliens forced Americans out from the Moon”,^[18]
• "Time machine built in Europe, Russian scientists say",^[19]
• “Time can be turned back”,^[20]
• “Alien and human skulls found on Mars”,^[21]
• "Nuclear strike hits Yemen",^[22]
• “Boriska, boy from Mars, says that all humans live eternally”,^[23]
• "Autotrophs: new kind of humans appears who neither drink nor eat"^[24]
• “Nazi Germany achieved its technological advantage with aliens’ help”.^[25]
• "The decision on Kyiv has been made: it will be destroyed so that the Russians do not get it" ^[26]

According to former State Duma deputy Boris Nadezhdin, Pravda.Ru is “a pro-Kremlin site that has been coming down on the opposition all the time”; according to Vladimir Pribylovsky, the site is maintained by the Department of Internal Policy of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation.^[27]

In 2005, one of the correspondents of Pravda.ru was involved in the story of the attack of "Nashi" on the headquarters of the National Bolshevik Party.^[27]

References

1. Lambroschini, Sophie (2003-11-04). "Russia: Pravda Versus Pravda: Which 'Truth' Will Prevail?". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
2. Gorshenin, Vadim (September 16, 2013). "There is no Pravda. There is Pravda.Ru". english.pravda.ru.
3. "Dear Senator McCain: Pravda.ru is not Pravda". National Review. 19 September 2013.
4. "ENCYCLOPÆDIA BRITANNICA, Pravda: SOVIET NEWSPAPER".
5. Называем Ходорковского серийным убийцей. gazeta.ru (in Russian). March 16, 2011.
6. Duffy, Ryan (July 8, 2013). "Portrait of a Russian Oligarch". Vice. Retrieved March 31, 2014.
7. ""Правда.ру" впервые изменила логотип". www.sostav.ru. Retrieved 2020-10-16.
8. "ESI MANUAL, THE RUSSIAN DEBATE ON THE SOUTH CAUCASUS: WHO IS WHO?" (PDF).
9. "Ретро-новости: Microsoft Office 2000, "Правда.ру", Международный день без интернета". 3DNews - Daily Digital Digest (in Russian). Retrieved 2020-10-16.
10. "Russia -- Source Descriptors of Key Russian Media" (PDF).
11. Putin, Vladimir V. (2013-09-12). "Opinion | A Plea for Caution From Russia". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-01-21.
12. McCain, John (2013-09-19). "Senator John McCain: Russians deserve better than Putin". Pravda.ru.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
13. Guardian Staff (2013-09-19). "Which Pravda did John McCain write about Syria for?". The Guardian. Retrieved 2022-01-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
14. Sudakov, Dmitry (2013-09-16). "There is no Pravda. There is Pravda.Ru". Pravda.ru. Retrieved 2022-01-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
15. "McCain claim leaves Communist Party baffled | eNCA". eNCA. Retrieved 2022-01-21.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
16. Kopan, Tal (19 September 2013). "Truthfully, McCain in wrong Pravda". Politico.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
17. "The 20 Russian News Outlets You Need To Read Before They Get The Ax".
18. "Aliens forced Americans out from the Moon". Pravda.ru. October 3, 2007. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
19. "Time Machine Built in Europe, Russian Scientists Say". Pravda.ru. August 6, 2010. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
20. "Time Can be Turned Back". Pravda.ru. March 1, 2004. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
21. "Alien and human skulls found on Mars". Pravda.ru. June 8, 2009. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
22. "Nuclear strike hits Yemen". Pravda.ru. May 29, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
23. "Boriska, boy from Mars, says that all humans live eternally". Pravda.ru. March 5, 2008. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
24. "Autotrophs: new kind of humans appears who neither drink nor eat". Pravda.ru. June 8, 2009. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
25. "Nazi Germany achieved its technological advantage with aliens' help". Pravda.ru. May 25, 2007. Retrieved November 20, 2016.
26. "Решение по Киеву принято: его уничтожат, чтобы русским не достался". Pravda.ru. November 2, 2022. Retrieved November 6, 2022.
27. Svetova, Zoya (2012-08-27). "Тени из прошлого" [Shadows from the past]. The New Times (in Russian). Retrieved 2020-10-06.

External links

• www.pravda.ru (Russian)
• port.pravda.ru (Portuguese)