Russian director Andrei Zvyagintsev - FT

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/0c524910-a242-11e4-bbb8-00144feab7de.html#axzz3PvJZIipH

In ‘Leviathan’, the controversial film-maker delivers a blistering critique of life under Putin

Oil price and Russian politics

http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2015/01/oil-price-and-russian-politics

Lunch with the FT: Richard Plepler Of HBO

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/5fc80e04-972f-11e4-845a-00144feabdc0.html?siteedition=intl

The 56-year-old is chief executive of HBO, the premium cable network that has, over the past 15 years, been responsible for some of the most innovative, talked-about shows on television, from the New Jersey mobsters of The Sopranos to the brutal dissection of urban life in The Wire, from the swords and dragons of Game of Thrones to True Detective’s emotionally damaged cops. Its programmes have 15 nominations in Sunday’s Golden Globes in Beverly Hills — the 14th successive year that it has garnered more nominations than any other television network.

It is HBO’s programme roster that most people think of when they call to mind examples of today’s “golden age of television”. But, despite the awards and 130m subscribers round the world, Plepler faces plenty of challenges. In recent years, HBO’s rivals have upped their game: shows such as House of Cards, Mad Men and Breaking Bad would be a natural fit for the channel but are shown elsewhere, while digital giants Netflix and Amazon have joined HBO’s cable and satellite rivals, such as Showtime, Starz, FX and AMC, in bidding for the best scripts and shows.

Inside Putin’s Information War - Peter Pomerantsev

http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2015/01/putin-russia-tv-113960_full.html#.VK6jsWK9KSN

Having seen how Russian TV works from the inside I wonder whether the West has the institutional or analytical tools necessary to deal with this new challenge. At a recent conference in Washington, U.S. officials told me they were surprised by how sophisticated Russian TV was. Up until this year they had been utterly unaware of the unique mix of authoritarianism, spin and entertainment the Kremlin has perfected.