The propagandists received orders from government officials to present the state budget as “social” and not to talk about spending on military aggression.
The Russian Federation plans to allocate 13.2 trillion rubles ($142 billion) in the state budget for 2025 for defense spending and the war against Ukraine – more than a third of all expenses and a record. However, Russian authorities fear that news of this “will cause a negative perception among citizens” and could lead to a drop in Putin’s rating. This was reported by the publication Meduza, citing its sources.
Shortly before the submission of the Russian budget to the Duma, the media received new instructions: to present the budget as “social” and not to talk about war expenses.
“There is one exception: payments to military personnel and support for their family members This fits under social provisions,” said a journalist from the Russian state media.
Other sources believe that the budget “should not be a taboo subject,” but “the conversation about it should be conducted with the right points,” and Russian media publications about the budget should inspire “social optimism, not pessimism, in the context that everyone is going to war.”
“Right now it is possible to show that military operations are far away and do not affect people but the increase in military spending can be a trigger: what is the money for and why?” – explained the origin.
The Russian state and the loyal government media listened to the “recommendations” of the authorities. The media prefers to remain silent about military spending, stressing that the budget “will allow for increased financing of obligations, programs and projects,” and “the distribution of social spending is relatively fair. “
We previously reported that the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) canceled the screening of Russian director Anastasia Trofimova’s film Russians at War after widespread protests.
Source: korrespondent
I am David Wyatt, a professional writer and journalist for Buna Times. I specialize in the world section of news coverage, where I bring to light stories and issues that affect us globally. As a graduate of Journalism, I have always had the passion to spread knowledge through writing.