Aspects of the Orange Revolution: Information and Manipulation Strategies in the 2004 Ukrainian Presidential Elections: Vol 2

Ed. By Harasymiw, Bohdan And Ilnytzkyj, Oleh S.; Umland, Andreas; Harasymiw, Bohdan; Ilnytzkyj, Oleh S.

ISBN 10: 3898216993 / ISBN 13: 9783898216999

Published by Ibidem, 2007

About this Item

264 pages. 8.27x5.83x0.79 inches. In Stock.

Seller Inventory # x-3898216993

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Aspects of the Orange Revolution: Information and Manipulation Strategies in the 2004 Ukrainian Presidential Elections: Vol 2
• Publisher: Ibidem
• Publication Date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 3898216993
• ISBN 13: 9783898216999
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: Brand New
• Weight: 1 kilogram

About this title

Synopsis

In Ukraine's presidential elections of 2004, the establishment candidate Viktor Yanukovych had the advantages of a solid regional base, access to administrative resources, dominance in the media, help by Russian spin-doctors, and support of Moscow. Yet the winner was the pro-Western challenger, Viktor Yushchenko. How did Ukrainian voters break through the barrage of propaganda so as to deliver their ultimate verdict? Was the divide between Eastern and Western Ukraine fact or PR fiction? In this volume, scholars from two continents examine various aspects of the elections that turned into the Orange Revolution focusing on electoral campaigns and attempts to manipulate results. Following the editor's scene-setting chapter which looks at the electoral laws and their consequences in the previous decade's elections, presidential and parliamentary, the contributors take up specific features of the 2004 contest. The critical part played by a single independent television channel is analyzed by Marta Dyczok. Ilya Khineyko reviews the coverage of the elections in the Russian press, favorable to Yanukovych and always looking for parallels between Russia and Ukraine as well as keeping in mind Moscow's interests. The myths and stereotypes of the campaign are taken up in two contributions by Lyudmyla Pavlyuk and Olena Yatsunska. Clearly, constructed images often overshadowed real issues. Valerii Polkonsky's essay exposes the linguistic innovations of the campaign, including the irony and humour unleashed by such incidents as the "egg attack" on Yanukovych. In Kerstin Zimmer's final paper, the machine politics, administrative resources and fraud which had worked so well in Donets'k are shown to have been less than successful on the national level for reasons of scale and impersonality.

About the Author

Dr. Bohdan Harasymiw is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at the University of Calgary, Canada. Dr. Oleh S. Ilnytzkyj is Professor of Ukrainian Culture, Language and Literature at the University of Alberta, Canada.