Cute Cats on a Rescue Mission: An Obituary to YouTube in Russia?

Abstract

Bibliographic note POLHEIM, Annemarie. 2022. Cute Cats on a Resue Mission: An Obituary to YouTube in Russia? 67 p. Master thesis. Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Institute of International Studies. Supervisor Mgr. Daniela Kolenovská, Ph.D. Abstract Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine has accelerated internet regulation and cutbacks on free expression in Russia. YouTube is one of the most established hybrid media platforms and an important source of information in the country. It is likely that the platform may be banned by Roskomnadzor at any time, as it blocks Russian state channels. The aim of this thesis is to outline the characteristics of the Russian YouTube landscape and to contribute to the understanding of current transformations of the Russian media system. Two datasets of YouTube channel networks, retrieved on January 6 and March 14, 2022, are analysed and compared. The data consists of YouTube channels of the Russian political spectrum and surrounding channels, as well as their links to each other (subscriptions, recommendations). A significant increase in the English-language clusters and the Russian-language educational cluster between January and March, and a decrease in the Russian-language entertainment and political clusters was observed. The findings, however, did not allow a...