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Kremlin Propagandist Calls to Define Limits of Free Speech in Russia

Dmitry Kiselyov (Anton Novoderezhkin / TASS)

Top Kremlin propagandist Dmitry Kiselyov asked Russian academics on Thursday “to define the limits of what is not inadmissible and what is allowed under freedom of speech and freedom of expression.” 

Kiselyov, often described as the Kremlin’s chief spin doctor, is best known as presenter of Vesti Nedeli, a weekly news programme on the state-run Rossia 1 television network. Earlier this week, Kiselyov suggested “narrowing the range of freedom of speech in Russia,” when criticizing an upcoming satirical film about the siege of Leningrad during World War II.

Speaking at meeting of the Russian Academy of Education in Moscow, Kiselyov stressed that freedom of speech should be limited "not by an administrative method, but as a result of a public, scientific discussion," the Kommersant business daily reported. 

“We have to create a new ethics system that will be adopted by society. There can be no effective society without internal prohibitions,” Kiselyov said, adding that “this task is very relevant for the Russian Academy of Education.”

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