Regional Media About Freedom of Speech: the View of Professionals

Members of the media offer the society not only information, but also new ideas and even a world view. Mass media construct values and meanings in the public sphere, set the direction of a general discussion, form the criteria for assessing events and conduct cultural wars. Some researchers believe that the media reproduce and preserve the dominant ideology, while others compare the influence of the media on society with the role that religion previously played. The research within the journalist kitchen has actualized against the backdrop of the intense formation of the myth about the "fourth power" omnipotence. Journalists as professionals are able better than others to assess the current situation with freedom of speech in Russia, to report on the facts of infringement of the free information distribution right, to tell about whose interests it is necessary to take into account while deciding on publishing the material. In order to obtain answers to these and other similar questions the Public Opinion Institute "Qualitas" carried out a sociological study in 2015 among Voronezh journalists, representatives of various mass media who occupy different posts in editorial offices – from chief editors to ordinary journalists. Similar studies were conducted in 2004 and 1994. Accordingly, it became possible to compare the responses of journalists for the period of twenty years, to identify trends, to assess prospects. It turned out that the infringement of freedom of speech in a journalistic environment is not always due to the fault of external actors (for example, representatives of the authorities or interested politicians). The decision to publish the material is often taken based on the kaleidoscope of various interests where commercial interests and human weaknesses play the "first violin". As a result it is concluded that the “inner” censor that limits freedom of speech inside the journalist may be more strict than external prohibitions.