Control of the People - Brezhnev, Andropov, Chernenko

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Media

  • Control of the media relaxed even further under Brezhnev. Popular magazines began to be published. Ownership of televisions and radios increased. This was to promote a movement towards a more consumer society.
  • As well as a deliberate freedom given to the media, Brezhnev also unintentionally lost control. Western magazines like Vogue were becoming more and more popular and it was difficult for the KGB to prevent the publication of political magazines.
  • TV ownership also increased under Brezhnev. Initially, he used this to his advantage. He limited media access to tapes and information which presented bad things happening in the USSR. For example, the footage of the war in Afghanistan was limited.
  • However, as time went on, media footage began to contradict ideas that were put forward by the government. For example, Brezhnev was presented as a healthy man, but footage showed that he had difficulty walking and often forgot what he was saying.
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Propaganda

  • Like Khrushchev, Brezhnev was ideologically opposed to the idea of a cult of personality, but adopted one for pragmatic reasons in order to strengthen his own power.
  • Brezhnev was presented as a disciple of Lenin, a military leader, an advocate for world peace and an approachable man. He reiterated this idea through speeches, photographs and occasions such as the 50th anniversary of the October Revolution.
  • However, Brezhnev's cult of personality was implausible. He was known to have never met Lenin, to not have seen frontline service and to live a luxurious lifestyle.
  • Therefore, the cult of personality meant Brezhnev was the target of jokes and cynicism about the lies of the government.
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Religion

  • Brezhnev was also opposed to religion, but saw the benefits of taking a pragmatic approach. Therefore, he abandoned Khrushchev's anti-religious policies and instead promoted atheism.
  • All churches that had been shut down were reopened and anti-religious propaganda was stopped.
  • The Institute of Scientific Atheism was set up in 1968. This published atheist articles and newspapers as well as information on how teachers should teach atheism in schools.
  • Brezhnev also took a different approach to Islam. Previous Soviet leaders had been dismissive of it, but Brezhnev called it a "revolutionary creed" in an attempt to improve relations in the Middle East.
  • Brezhnev's attempts to promote atheism were unsuccessful. The proportion of people claiming a religious faith remained at 20% between 1960 and 1985.
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Terror

  • Brezhnev was suspicious of the level of freedom permitted under Khrushchev, but knew that a return to terror would remind people of life under Stalin. Therefore, when he appointed Yuri Andropov as head of the KGB in 1967 he asked him to install the maximum amount of control with the minimum about of violence.
  • Andropov's main goal was to control dissidents. This was done through the use of the KGB Order No. 0051, which allowed increased surveillance of dissidents and action taken against them by the authorities.
  • This was done through show trials of artists in 1964 and 1966. However, this caused public outcry from abroad and was an embarrassment to the government.
  • Andropov increased discipline within the KGB. They weren't allowed to accept gifts and had to declare their financial assets. If their relatives broke the law, they were dismissed. This was meant to allow them to identify dissidents more effectively.
  • When the dissidents had been identified, they were encouraged to emigrate to another country. In the 1970s, 100,000 people left, mainly artists.
  • Jews were also encouraged to move to Israel. Although previous Communist leaders hadn't allowed this, Brezhnev said that Jews were more likely to be dissidents. Although they made up 1% of the population, they were 20% of journalists.
  • Repressive psychiatry against dissidents. Medical records were private.
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Terror

  • Andropov made some use of traditional tactics. 528 people were sent to prison between 1968 and 1970. In 1972 there were show trials for the dissident publishers of a human rights magazine.
  • In 1975 the Soviet Union signed the Helsinki Agreement. This was meant to protect human rights. Although the government often ignored it, it was often used by dissidents to put pressure on the government.
  • Andropov's attempt to control dissidents were mostly successful. However Sakharov and Solzhenitsyn were both critical of the government but were famous (writer and scientist) so couldn't be stopped.
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Culture

  • Brezhnev disapproved of Khrushchev's 'thaws' as he felt that it weakened communist control. Therefore, he introduced more discipline that previous leaders.
  • Brezhnev promoted a style called 'nostalgia' which focused on looking at past successes of the communist government. For example, the film 'Liberation' and its four sequels in 1970 focused on Soviet victory in the Second World War.
  • Brezhnev persecuted artists in show trials, such as Daniel and Sinyavsky, where the only evidence used against them was their own writing. However, these were unpopular abroad and were therefore rare.
  • Brezhnev became especially strict after the Palm Springs in 1968. Artist dissent in Czechoslovakia fought for the end to communist rule. Brezhnev sent the Red Army in to deal with the dissidents.
  • Brezhnev's attempts to control dissidents were not successful. Artists such as Dimitri Shagin  and Ilya Kabakov led dissidence against the government.
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