Why is the US media so anti-Russian?

Posted 4Sep2017, updated 5Oct2019.

I recently finished a paper on this topic and I honestly still couldn’t give you a definitive answer. I have theories, however…

The American media needs a target/topic, and what better subject than a culture that they know very little about? Different language, different culture, and years of Russia being either the feared Soviet Union or a den of hardened, yet backward, criminals… that, to me, seems like a recipe for controversial news coverage.

Western political efforts with Russia have typically been something that “we’ll get to later…” There has been other pressing issues – terrorism, our own internal issues/division, and whatever else has been placed as a priority. It has been mucheasier for the media to “explain” any of these problems in a way that best suits their audience, whether it is conservative or liberal. To try and break things down “Barney style” for the general population, when it comes to Russia, is cumbersome, detail-oriented, and significant… especially if the media truly wants to provide perspective and information. However, it is much easier to paint the problem a lovely shade of “Communist crimson” and look for everything wrong with Russia as the media goes about its merry way of selective malevolence. Remember the casual condescension during the October 2012 debates when Romney was mocked for having an outdated view of foreign policy? Yeah, the press of today seems to have forgotten all about that:

Governor Romney, I’m glad that you recognize that al-Qaida’s a threat because a few months ago when you were asked, what’s the biggest geopolitical threat facing America, you said Russia — not al-Qaida, you said Russia. And the 1980s are now calling to ask for their foreign policy back because, you know, the Cold War’s been over for 20 years.

The better question would be “Why is the U.S. media so anti-moderate?” Rather than inform on anything with as little bias as possible, the media – in my opinion – has effectively morphed into a bizarre form of domestic terrorism as defined by 18 U.S. Code § 2331:

“…activities that involve acts dangerous to human life that are a violation of the criminal laws of the United States or of any State; appear to be intended— to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping; and occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States.”

Granted, there have been no known news anchors lurking around dark parking structures with chloroform-soaked rags in hand and a nearby shady white van marked “free candy,” but going off the background shenanigans one occasionally sees during live interviews on the street, this might be up for debate.

Do I think that Russia is without blame in any recent controversies? I would be hard-pressed to consider that they are entirely innocent, and any discussion beyond that would require much more time and attention beyond answering the initial question. However, I do firmly believe that the U.S. media is unimaginative, lazy, and inflammatory in their coverage of U.S. – Russian relations, and this will not bode well for the immediate future of both nations.