Podcast: Jokes, Pranks, And Videotape -- The New Russian Political Humor
Police detain a man wearing a Vladimir Putin mask during an opposition protest in St. Petersburg.
The opposition appears to have settled on at least one tactic to deal with the Kremlin's efforts to crack down on dissent. They're making fun of it. And, aided by social media, they're doing so in very public ways -- employing everything from hi-tech public pranks to viral videos to mischievous hashtags.
Once the domain of kitchen table discussions, Russian political humor has gone viral. And the trend is clearly getting under the regime's skin.
There is no doubt that this has all been amusing for journalists, bloggers, and for opposition figures themselves.
But what effect -- if any -- does this new wave of political humor have? In this week's edition of "The Power Vertical Podcast," I discussed the new wave of Russian political humor and what it signifies with my regular co-host, Kirill Kobrin, managing editor of RFE/RL's Russian Service.
