Putin’s media spectacle: Kremlin chief asks citizens’ questions during the war

After a break last year due to the war, Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a major press conference for the first time today. The question and answer session for journalists will be combined as a media spectacle on state television with the TV show “The Direct Wire”, in which citizens can describe their problems, to form the program “Results of the Year”.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the question and answer session would begin around midday Moscow time (10 a.m. CET). State media reported in advance that more than one and a half million questions had been submitted.

The attention for the major media event is not only great because of Putin’s devastating war of aggression against Ukraine. It is the first time since the invasion began that he has spoken out in such a TV format. The Kremlin leader wants to be elected president for the fifth time on March 17th. He had the constitution changed specifically for this purpose.

Putin’s “Results of the Year”: half press conference, half public consultation

Traditionally, the press conference and the public consultation hours took place separately. The country’s many problems such as poverty, social hardship, complaints about health care and a lack of infrastructure are repeatedly discussed. Putin, who has led the country for more than a quarter of a century, repeatedly uses the citizens’ consultation hours to portray himself as a problem solver and caretaker. Critics accuse him of asking the same questions over and over again – without any improvement in the situation.

Sociologists at the independent Russian polling institute Levada have found that most people would like to know from Putin when the war will end. They recently found in representative surveys that more and more Russians are in favor of starting peace negotiations.

In second place were questions about the pension and its amount for Putin, according to the Levada survey published at the beginning of December. Many seniors therefore asked when they could finally lead a “normal life”. Thirdly, the question for Putin is: “When will there be normal salaries?” Anyone who works full-time for a whole month in Russia only receives the equivalent of a few hundred euros on average.

About three hours of broadcast time are planned. However, Putin’s spokesman Peskov said there was no time limit. In the city center, several streets near the Kremlin are closed as part of massive security measures.

Invitations only to hand-picked journalists

Because of his war of aggression against Ukraine, Putin canceled the press conference last December, which was always scheduled to last several hours, for the first time in ten years. Observers at the time were convinced that Putin wanted to avoid questions from international journalists – in view of the war against Ukraine that began on February 24, 2022, where his army suffered repeated defeats. Putin is now increasingly confident that he is winning the war.

The national television consultation hour “Direct Wire,” during which citizens can normally make personal complaints to Putin every year, was also canceled last year. It was last organized on June 30, 2021. In recent months, Putin has repeatedly answered questions from loyal journalists who accompany him on his trips or meet him in the Kremlin. Independent media have not been allowed to attend such rounds for a long time.

Unlike Putin’s previous press conferences at the end of the year, this time there was no official accreditation process. The Kremlin only extended invitations to hand-picked journalists.