Dozhd


Dozhd, also known as TV Rain, is a Russian independent television channel. It is owned by journalist . Dozhd focuses on news, discussions, culture, politics, business reports, and documentaries. The channel's motto is "talk about important things with those who are important to us". Most Dozhd shows are live broadcasts.

Programs and presenters

Presenters

Dozhd was one of the first channels in Russia to openly cover the 2011 Russian protests against the alleged rigging of the parliamentary elections. By 10 December, it was showing a white ribbon, a symbol of the protests, by its on-screen logo. The station's owner, Sindeyeva, explained this as being a sign of "sincerity", rather than "propaganda", and an attempt to be "mediators" instead of simply journalists.

Repercussions

On 9 December 2011, Dozhd was asked to provide copies of its coverage of the protests to check if it had abided by Russian media laws. President Dmitry Medvedev was also noticed to have unfollowed Dozhd on Twitter. However, the channel was the first mass media outlet that he had chosen to follow on Twitter, according to an RIA Novosti report.

Eviction

On 26 January 2014, Dozhd ran a survey on its website and on its live "Dilettants" discussion program asking viewers if Leningrad should have been surrendered to the invading Nazi army in order to save hundreds of thousands of lives. Within 30 minutes, Dozhd removed the poll and apologized for incorrect wording. In the following days Dozhd was criticized by politicians, activists, State Duma members and Valentina Matvienko for its online poll on the Leningrad siege of World War II. Dmitry Peskov, Vladimir Putin's press secretary, also criticized the channel and said that they violated "more than a law". Yuri Pripachkin, President of the Cable Television Association of Russia, said that he wanted "to take functions of censoring". In a resolution backed by the St. Petersburg legislature’s deputies, Prosecutor General Yury Chaika was requested to “conduct an investigation into provocative material posted on the website of the Dozhd television channel … and take appropriate measures, including shutting down the channel.” On 29 January, the largest Russian TV providers disconnected the channel.
Dozhd was forced to move to a private apartment in October 2014.

Availability

Dozhd Website provides live broadcasting and archived programs.
Since March 2013, the channel is available in Israel as part of basic package of the :en:Yes |Yes Israel satellite television provider.
In January 2017, the channel was forced by the National Council on Television and Radio Broadcasting to stop broadcasting in Ukraine. It was shut down because channel content implied Crimea was Russian territory. According to Dozhd owner Natalya Sindeyeva Russian law requires that media use maps that show Crimea as a part of Russia. Since the 2014 Crimean crisis, the status of Crimea is under dispute between Russia and Ukraine; Ukraine and the majority of the international community considers Crimea an integral part of Ukraine, while Russia, on the other hand, considers Crimea an integral part of Russia.

Key people