A "mafia" of brokers controls advertising on Russian state television, undercutting private competitors and robbing the system of income, the head of the Russian Journalists' Union said Tuesday.


Since advertising first appeared on government television seven years ago, some television executives have accepted bribes in exchange for cut-rate ad time, Vsevold Bogdanov, chairman of the union, told a news conference.


"It's left a terrible legacy," Bogdanov said. "Even journalists try to sell media air time."


Bogdanov said both journalists and the private media industry are hurt, because ads on state television are sold at below-market rates.


Bogdanov called for the creation of a national advertising council to regulate ads on television and in print.


Vladimir Kismereshkin, leader of a group working with Bogdanov to set up an advertising council, said the organization would screen commercials relating to children, medicines, contraceptives, tobacco and alcohol.


Ethics in advertising has moved up the public agenda since the MMM pyramid scheme attracted millions of investors with an aggressive nationwide ad campaign. The government later banned MMM from state television, but ads still appear on private channels.


Kismereshkin said a national council would ensure that hidden ads -- reports that promote products or services in return for money -- are clearly labeled.


Bogdanov said corruption in advertising on state television began seven years ago, when executives first debated the cost of a minute of air time. They came up with a figure of 2,000 rubles a minute, a price Bogdanov said was so low it invited executives to demand an additional payment, or bribe, of 10,000 rubles before an ad would go on the air.