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Journalism in Central Asia: A Victim of Politics, Economics, and Widespread Self-censorship

Department of Journalism, University of Connecticut, 337 Mansfield Road, Storrs, CT 06269-1129, Timothy.Kenny{at}UConn.edu

Peter Gross

School of Journalism and Electronic Media, College of Communication and Information, 333 Communications Building, The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN 37996-0333, pgross{at}utk.edu

Significant efforts to develop an independent journalism have stumbled badly in Central Asia, where politics, economics and the unforeseen consequence of widespread self-censorship have derailed development of a Western-style media and the democracy it serves. What is worse, from Kazakhstan to Uzbekistan, prospects for developing a believable, fact-based journalism look grim. Much of this trouble can be laid at the doorstep of self-censorship, which flourishes across the region with uncommon vigor. Central Asian journalism is in worse shape than the rest of the post-Communist world, largely because the socioeconomic and political situations in this relatively remote region remain in flux from a backwardness that modernity is only of late and slowly affecting. One of the most confounding elements that stymie the evolution of Central Asia journalism is a culture that drives the new post-Communist institutions and the mentalities of the region's sociopolitical, economic, and cultural elites. Consequently, those who endeavor to aid the evolution of Central Asian media should look to the history and culture of the region and then impart a more complete understanding of Western journalism's mission, values, roles, and sound news business practices before addressing journalistic techniques.

Key Words: authoritarianism • Central Asia • democracy • freedom of the press

The International Journal of Press/Politics, Vol. 13, No. 4, 515-525 (2008)
DOI: 10.1177/1940161208324644


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