Support The Moscow Times!

Russians Love Cracking a Good Joke, Unless It's About Putin

One-quarter of Russians believe that jokes about President Vladimir Putin should be considered off-limits, state-run pollster VTsIOM revealed Wednesday.

But Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov seemed to disagree, urging that all jokes are appropriate, so long as they're good.

Addressing an apparent April Fools' joke by news site EUobserver — which said that France was selling a pair of Mistral warships to the European Union's foreign service instead of to Russia as previously agreed — Peskov quipped: "All good jokes are appropriate, as is the fulfillment of a contract," in comments carried by the TASS news agency.

Seventy-nine percent of respondents to the poll said that they personally had a good sense of humor. But while a substantial majority of Russians feel confident in their capacity to crack jokes, it appears that many believe a plethora of topics are no laughing matter.

The poll also found that most Russians (57 percent) consider it inappropriate to poke fun at religious values. In general, religion is taken very seriously in Russia. A law passed nearly two years ago by the Russian parliament criminalized insulting the feelings of religious believers.

Among the other topics considered out of line for Russians to kid about were war, with 63 percent saying such jokes were unacceptable, as well as genocide and terrorist attacks (58 percent) and family tragedies (61 percent).

Most Russians do enjoy watching comedy films and television series, with 79 percent of those polled saying they get a laugh out of watching humorous shows. Forty-one percent said they listen to comedy radio programs, while 39 percent read rib-tickling literature and 37 percent browsed amusing websites online.

The survey was carried out between March 21 and 22, among 1,600 people across 46 regions, and had a margin of error no greater than 3.5 percent, the pollster said in a statement.


Sign up for our free weekly newsletter

Our weekly newsletter contains a hand-picked selection of news, features, analysiss and more from The Moscow Times. You will receive it in your mailbox every Friday. Never miss the latest news from Russia. Preview
Subscribers agree to the Privacy Policy

A Message from The Moscow Times:

Dear readers,

We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."

These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.

We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.

Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.

By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.

Once
Monthly
Annual
Continue
paiment methods
Not ready to support today?
Remind me later.

Read more