“No war. In a country where freedom of speech is punishable by imprisonment, Marina Ovsyannikova’s decision to interrupt the news broadcast waving a banner against the war in Ukraine is extremely rare. And brave. 20 Minutes returns to that impressive position taken in a country that continues to shut up mouth to its citizens.
What happened ?
On Monday evening, Ekaterina Andreeva presents television news from the state channel Channel One. A job to which she is accustomed, since she has been doing it for more than twenty years. But on Monday, during her Vremya evening news, a woman, Marina Ovsyannikova, bursts in from behind, waving a sign. Phrases “No war. Don’t believe the propaganda. You are being deceived here” and “Russians against the war” appear in front of the cameras, while she chants “Stop the war! No war! The unemotional Ekaterina Andreeva continues to run her live newspaper before the hastily management launches the hospital report.
Recall that the history of Channel One, the propaganda channel of the authorities, is replete with scandals related to the dissemination of false information. In 2014, when Vladimir Putin was preparing to annex Crimea, a TV channel claimed that Ukrainian soldiers had crucified a three-year-old child. The channel remains extremely popular in Russia and is even the most viewed channel according to The Atlantic.
Who is Marina Ovsyannikova?
Behind this large sign with a strong message and an even more impressive gesture is Marina Ovsyannikova. 44 years old, she is a producer of Channel One. In a video recorded before her appearance on the news, a Russian citizen explained that her father was Ukrainian and her mother was Russian. “They were never enemies,” she emphasizes, calling the invasion of Ukraine “a fratricidal war.”
She explains that “unfortunately” she worked for several years on the Kervi TV channel, which “promotes Kremlin propaganda.” “I feel ashamed for letting me lie on TV, for letting the Russians be zombified,” she explains before bursting into the studio.
According to her Facebook page, Marina Ovsyannikova studied at the Kuban State University in Krasnodar near Georgia, then graduated from the Russian Academy of Civil Service and National Economy in 2005.
What are the implications of this position?
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the protest “hooliganism” on Tuesday. Marina Ovsyannikova is imprisoned. This is reported by the Russian news agency TASS., the television producer was arrested immediately after her intervention. Indeed, fearing that public opinion will turn against him, Vladimir Putin has brutally suppressed freedom of expression since the beginning of the war in Ukraine. A new amendment introduced in these circumstances allows prosecution of anyone who disseminates information aimed at “discrediting” the Russian military. And condemn her to fifteen years in prison.
“I proceed from the fact that my client Marina Ovsyannikova faces criminal rather than administrative proceedings under the new law, which provides for up to 15 years in prison,” said lawyer Daniil Berman. “It is highly likely that the authorities are using this as an example to silence other protesters,” he added, stressing that he has not yet been able to meet with his client or find out exactly where she is being held.
It is also possible that Marina Ovsyannikova will be fined a large amount. Faced with this possibility, Leonid Volkov, who is close to Vladimir Putin’s most notorious opponent, Alexei Navalny (who was poisoned and later imprisoned), reacted. “We are ready to pay [son] fine” and “any other network employee who would do the same,” he assures Twitter.
The video of Marina Ovsyannikova’s breakup in front of the cameras spread across social networks at the speed of a forest fire. On her Facebook profile, tens of thousands of internet users send her messages of support calling her a “heroine”. However, it is not certain that the producer can read them or even know about the support of Leonid Volkov, because Facebook has been blocked in Russia since March 5, and Twitter is limited. And the influence of Vladimir Putin on information in Russia is growing every day.