Re-imposing totalitarian information control in Russia

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The internet, Russia's last source of information free of state control is now under threat. Seizing control of internet freedom could be the next step in the re-imposition of totalitarianism in Russia.

Over the past decade, while proud KGB spy Vladimir Putin has held power, there have been two alarming trends.

First, the Russian government has taken control of all the traditional mass media organs. The Russian counterparts to ABC, CBS, NBC, The New York Times, The LA Times and The Washington Post are all directly owned and operated by the Russian government.

Second, one after another -- starting with legislator Galina Starovoitova and continuing to most recently include human rights activist Natalia Estemirova -- the Russian government's critics have been murdered. Needless to say, these killings have not been reported on the traditional mass media, much less has any complicity by the Kremlin been alleged.

The Kremlin's response to Western criticism of this neo-Soviet media crackdown has been singular: "Don't worry," we're told, because "the Russian Internet remains free and vibrant" and it picks up any slack left by the traditional media. Most recently, Russian "president" Dmitri Medvedev repeated this claim while being interviewed by CNN's milquetoast-in-chief, Fareed Zakaria, who let it pass without a word.

To put it bluntly, that claim is a shameless lie...

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