Features of the ideological mechanism of the modern Russian state

Abstract

Purpose of the study is to determine the range of ideological apparatuses used by the Russian state, the applied set of methods of ideological influence, as well as the features and causes of the ideological orientation of the ruling elite. The work analyses such ideological apparatus of the state as the mass media (newspapers, magazines, TV and radio channels); educational institutions (schools, state educational institutions of higher and secondary vocational education); political parties, public associations, trade unions; film industry (producing and distributing television and film), as well as people of art (filmmakers, writers, artists); church; press and PR services. The features of their relationship with the ruling establishment and the type and content of the used ideological influence are determined. For example, the majority of the media belongs to the media holdings, which in turn are controlled by the economic and political establishment (the state). In addition, there are examples of ideological influence in textbooks, films, public actions. It also briefly describes the "trolling" organizations ("troll factories"), whose activities are aimed at the consciousness of the Internet users. The ruling establishment actively and effectively uses all the possibilities of the ideological apparatus in their class interests. The reason for the lack of a clear and non-vague ideology (like the Soviet one) is, first, the social heterogeneity of the ruling establishment, which also gives rise to different ideological positions, and, second, the opposite situation would only aggravate the legitimacy crisis of the existing political regime. None of the worldview models of the modern ideological spectrum is able to ensure the legitimacy of the ruling establishment, on the one hand, and to eliminate the discrepancies between the declared and social practices, on the other hand.