The Sunday Funnies

From The “You Can’t Make this Stuff Up!” Department

MOSCOW (The St. Petersburg Times) — Two Egyptian citizens face criminal charges in the Bryansk region for attempting to tunnel under the Russian border using a shoehorn, Interfax reported Wednesday. The Prosecutor General’s Office said Wednesday that the Egyptians, Mohammed Anwar el Maghriby Ali Kuram and Said Ali Taha Mohammed Hassan, hatched a plan in early July to cross the border illegally into Western Europe. They flew into Moscow on tourist visas, then made it to the Belarussian-Polish border by car and train. A statement from the Prosecutor General’s Office said the pair used a shoehorn to tunnel into Poland under a barbed-wire barrier along the border. “Once in Poland, the Egyptians lost their way, and assuming that the next barbed-wire fence they encountered was the border between Poland and Germany, they dug another tunnel using the same shoehorn,” the statement said. “Unfortunately, they wound up back in Belarus instead of Germany.” After a brief stay in the custody of Belarussian border police, the two men were put on a train to Moscow and told to report to the Egyptian Embassy. They got off the train in Smolensk instead, however, and made their way to the border town of Sevsk, where they were detained by border guards as they tried to burrow across the border into Ukraine. The two men are currently in jail awaiting trial in a Bryansk regional court. They have been charged with attempting to cross the Russian border illegally in an organized group. The charge carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

MOSCOW (The Moscow Times – Anna Malpas) Recently, I’ve been reading a series of very dull interviews in glossy magazines. The only interesting thing about them is that the subjects are all famous Russians, and somewhere in the second-to-last paragraph they all drop in a mention of the mobile phone operator Beeline. The people taking part — tennis player Yelena Dementyeva and filmmaker Yegor Konchalovsky, among others — talk to an unnamed interviewer in a Q&A format. Then there are just a couple of sentences where they talk about a convenient way to pay their phone bills. After that, it’s back to their latest film, tennis match or whatever. These ads, which have run in Hello! and Seven Days magazines, aren’t fooling anybody, since they stick out visually from the rest of the content. But at the same time, they probably leave the participants feeling like they haven’t completely sold their souls to the almighty ruble. Konchalovsky takes the opportunity to name-drop at least five productions he’s currently involved in. Other celebrities aren’t as finicky about putting their faces to products. Film director Fyodor Bondarchuk may have made millions with the buddy drama “Company 9,” but that doesn’t mean he can’t make a little extra cash plugging beer and vodka (separately, not as chasers). Meanwhile, the folksy playwright and actor Yevgeny Grishkovets shows off his Everyman credentials by advertising American Express with the slogan “Either you have it now, or you will.” Some of the faces seem to fit the products better than others. One of the less successful combinations was television host Oksana Pushkina‘s performance for the inexpensive, Russian-made moisturizing cream Black Pearl. Not long afterward, she hit the headlines after suffering ill effects from a cosmetic surgery procedure. On that note, cosmetic surgery might seem like the ultimate no-no when it comes to celebrity endorsement. But Lyubov Polishchuk, an actress who starred in films back in Soviet times, used to have her photograph on ads for a clinic that appeared regularly in Seven Days. True, it seems they’ve stopped appearing recently, perhaps due to a tabloid story about her temporary paralysis after some terrifying procedure. Sometimes it’s not the celebrity’s face that’s most important when it comes to casting ads. The dancer and stripper Tarzan, who is married to pop singer Natasha Korolyova, can be seen on posters in the metro advertising underpants. The more A-list Russian celebrities often choose to advertise watches, usually very expensive ones. The pop singer Alsu has been photographed wearing a slim Orient watch and the satisfied expression of someone whose daddy is a former vice president of LUKoil. Another singer, Zhanna Friske, is now advertising the same watchmaker in a photo shoot that reverses her usual principle of wearing more makeup than clothes. That’s not to say humbler products can’t have starry faces representing them. Nikolai Baskov, the favorite pop and opera singer of Russian housewives, recently appeared in a widely printed “news” story about his feelings of nausea after spending a whole day shooting a tea commercial soon to grace our screens. Of course, this vitally important story didn’t forget to mention that he still liked the product in question. And a recent commercial featured the one-time goalkeeper for the Soviet soccer team, Rinat Dasayev, reminiscing about his glory days, only to find that his treasured sweat-stained shirt had been washed shiny and new by his housekeeper, using Ariel detergent. A journalist from Komsomolskaya Pravda called up Dasayev to ask whether the shirt used in the commercial was actually one he had played in. Not surprisingly, the answer was short and sharp.

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

The Company She Keeps

La Russophobe is in good company. Reader Jeremy Putley points us to a recent report from Izvestia which appeared in the Johnson’s Russia List which declares that John McCain, past and future U.S. presidential candidate and one of the most respected and influential people on the face of the planet, is a card-carrying “russophobe.” Isn’t it interesting how Russians view McCain as “peremptory in the American style”? Russians really think that Ukrainians, Georgians and Baltic people see Russians differently, not at all peremptory, just respectful and reasonable. In other words, they have their heads about a million miles deep in the Neo-Soviet sand. Here is the item:

Izvestia August 30, 2006
Report by Aleksandr Iashvili
“Senator McCain Promises To Protect Georgia From Putin”

Tbilisi — US Senator John McCain, who is sometimes referred to a “the United States‘ chief Russophobe,” has arrived in Georgia on a three-day visit. Tbilisi‘s sharpest wits immediately dubbed this trip an “inspection tour” — hinting at the fact that in Washington it is McCain who is considered the “overseer” of Mikheil Saakashvili and his team of “rose revolutionaries.” The inspection is proceeding productively. Together with several fellow-senators, McCain has even ventured into “enemy territory” — Tskhinvali, the South Ossetian capital, which is not under the Tbilisi authorities’ jurisdiction. The American visitors met with South Ossetian leader Eduard Kokoiti and engaged him in “an intensive exchange of opinions.”That exchange left McCain deeply disappointed. He was particularly displeased by Kokoiti’s statement that “the people of South Ossetia see their future within the Russian Federation.” At a press conference held in Tbilisi immediately upon the Americans’ return from Tskhinvali the senator complained that he had received from his Ossetian conversation partner “no specific answers to the question why the peace plan for the conflict’s settlement was not being implemented.” The American guest reassured his audience: He said that the United States “firmly supports Georgia‘s territorial integrity. Your country is a friend of America, and is worthy to become a NATO member,” the senator proclaimed. But McCain would not have been his normal self if he had failed to recall the favorite target of his speeches — Vladimir Putin. He told the Tbilisi journalists that he had been shocked at the sight of a billboard on the road to Tskhinvali that said “Putin is our president.” “Putin will never be president on Georgian territory,” the senator vowed. While so saying, he had been emotional in the Caucasian style and peremptory in the American style. On hearing such assurances, Mikheil Saakashvili was unable to conceal his delight. He is, after all, convinced (and has repeatedly said so in his speeches) that it is McCain who will be the next US president. On this occasion too, speaking in Mtskheta, the ancient Georgian capital, Saakashvili again referred to the senator as George Bush’s possible successor and, for some reason, he dubbed his own country “a smithy where American presidents are forged”

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

Is Kommersant in the Kremlin’s Gunsights?

RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday that “the director general of the Kommersant publishing house confirmed that negotiations on the sale of the company to a Russian businessman are underway. ‘I do not want to make any comments,’ Demyan Kudryavtsev said. ‘But the deal is underway.’ He said the publishing house is being sold to Alisher Usmanov, the owner of Metalloinvest holding, and that the deal satisfied both parties. The company’s previous owner, businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili, earlier said he planned to sell 100% of his publishing business for no less than its market value, estimated at $200 million. Speculation is already rife that this is a move by the Kremlin against one of the last major bastions of critical media in the country. La Russophobe would just like to say for the record that if Kommersant is coopted by the Kremlin she will lose a significant source of insight about Russia and will consider it the beginning of the end for Russia, the first nail in Russia’s Neo-Soviet coffin. It hasn’t happened yet and now is the time to act to prevent it. The Moscow Times reports:

Senior Kommersant editors Thursday cast doubt on Alisher Usmanov’s claim that he would not tamper with the newspaper’s editorial policy after he acquired it.

“It would be too early to say now whether I believe promises that the editorial policy of Kommersant will be left unchanged,” chief editor Vladislav Borodulin told RIA-Novosti while attending a Beijing forum of editors of Chinese and Russian media.

Another senior Kommersant staffer was more blunt. “All this talk of this being some kind of private investment — give me a break,” he said. Several senior staff members may soon leave, he added.

A senior writer at the paper confirmed that deputy editor Alexander Shadrin, responsible for business coverage, resigned Wednesday.

Tatyana Lysova, the top editor at Vedomosti, Kommersant’s main rival, expressed deep reservations about the change in ownership. “We like to see a strong competitor,” she said. “In the immediate period after the sale, business readers’ trust in Kommersant is likely to drop.”

Alluding to Usmanov’s senior role at state-controlled Gazprom and his metals assets, Lysova added: “Everyone knows about Usmanov and his range of businesses. At first, readers will be skeptical, looking to spot his influence in the coverage of certain topics.”

On Wednesday, Usmanov said he had no plans to change Kommersant’s editorial policy. Usmanov is expected to acquire the paper formally within days.

Analysts, meanwhile, buttressed Lysova, saying the newspaper could indeed be facing a drop in readership and other staff departures.

Since Usmanov is a well-connected steel magnate, it is unlikely the paper will retain its objective, often anti-Kremlin perspective, said Boris Timoshenko, head of monitoring at the Glasnost Defense Foundation.

“Practice shows that Kommersant may well lose its face, its influence and its readership,” Timoshenko said, referring to Gazeta, Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. All these papers have been snapped up by Kremlin-friendly owners and have shifted their reporting away from serious, often probing journalism to more tabloid-style coverage.

Timoshenko noted that Gazeta, also bought by a steel magnate, Vladimir Lisin, had “joined the row of those colorful, superficially successful but bland publications.”

Kommersant has a circulation of nearly 123,000 and is distributed in 16 cities in Russia. Since July, there has been a Kommersant Ukraine edition.

In an interview late Wednesday, Usmanov said of the paper: “I’ve been a kommersant for, what, 20 years, and a fan of Kommersant for 15. I’d have been a fool to pass up this opportunity.”

The paper is the flagship publication of Kommersant Publishing House, which is expected to earn $70.4 million this year, with a net profit of $15 million.

The publishing house also owns the magazines Dengi, Vlast, Avtopilot and Molotok, among others. Molotok, a weekly glossy for teenagers, was recently attacked by authorities for publishing obscene photographs and sex advice.

Usmanov, with no known experience or assets in media, will complete the purchase of the publishing house using a recently registered offshore firm, Mediaholding, which has no other assets. Usmanov said the deal was worth about $200 million, while Kommersant reported Thursday that it was more than $300 million, citing sources close to the deal.

Borodulin, the chief editor, said Usmanov would meet the newspaper’s staff after Sept. 15. On Thursday, members of Usmanov’s business team paid a visit to Kommersant’s offices in a former school building northwest of the city center.

Usmanov is also the president of Gazprominvestholding, a 100 percent subsidiary of Gazprom. In that capacity, he is charged with keeping Gazprom’s debt in check and handling some of the gas monopoly’s assets.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, he spent some time behind bars on fraud charges. Following his release, he built a fortune in the iron-ore market. With partners Vasily Anisimov and State Duma Deputy Andrei Skoch, Usmanov cobbled together a 45 percent share of the market. The holding company controlling these assets is Metalloinvest; all three have equal shares. Forbes magazine estimates Usmanov’s fortune to be $3.1 billion.

A third senior Kommersant source suggested that Chukotka governor and former oil and aluminum magnate Roman Abramovich had acted as a middleman in the Kommersant sale. There was speculation Thursday that Abramovich might have bought the paper from its former owner, Boris Berezovsky ally Badri Patarkatsishvili, before turning it over to Usmanov.

A spokesman for Millhouse, Abramovich’s holding company, dubbed the speculation “just another rumor of the day.”

Berezovsky, the owner of Kommersant until he sold it to Patarkatsishvili earlier this year, said late Thursday that he had no detailed knowledge about the transaction.

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

Is Kommersant in the Kremlin’s Gunsights?

RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday that “the director general of the Kommersant publishing house confirmed that negotiations on the sale of the company to a Russian businessman are underway. ‘I do not want to make any comments,’ Demyan Kudryavtsev said. ‘But the deal is underway.’ He said the publishing house is being sold to Alisher Usmanov, the owner of Metalloinvest holding, and that the deal satisfied both parties. The company’s previous owner, businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili, earlier said he planned to sell 100% of his publishing business for no less than its market value, estimated at $200 million. Speculation is already rife that this is a move by the Kremlin against one of the last major bastions of critical media in the country. La Russophobe would just like to say for the record that if Kommersant is coopted by the Kremlin she will lose a significant source of insight about Russia and will consider it the beginning of the end for Russia, the first nail in Russia’s Neo-Soviet coffin. It hasn’t happened yet and now is the time to act to prevent it. The Moscow Times reports:

Senior Kommersant editors Thursday cast doubt on Alisher Usmanov’s claim that he would not tamper with the newspaper’s editorial policy after he acquired it.

“It would be too early to say now whether I believe promises that the editorial policy of Kommersant will be left unchanged,” chief editor Vladislav Borodulin told RIA-Novosti while attending a Beijing forum of editors of Chinese and Russian media.

Another senior Kommersant staffer was more blunt. “All this talk of this being some kind of private investment — give me a break,” he said. Several senior staff members may soon leave, he added.

A senior writer at the paper confirmed that deputy editor Alexander Shadrin, responsible for business coverage, resigned Wednesday.

Tatyana Lysova, the top editor at Vedomosti, Kommersant’s main rival, expressed deep reservations about the change in ownership. “We like to see a strong competitor,” she said. “In the immediate period after the sale, business readers’ trust in Kommersant is likely to drop.”

Alluding to Usmanov’s senior role at state-controlled Gazprom and his metals assets, Lysova added: “Everyone knows about Usmanov and his range of businesses. At first, readers will be skeptical, looking to spot his influence in the coverage of certain topics.”

On Wednesday, Usmanov said he had no plans to change Kommersant’s editorial policy. Usmanov is expected to acquire the paper formally within days.

Analysts, meanwhile, buttressed Lysova, saying the newspaper could indeed be facing a drop in readership and other staff departures.

Since Usmanov is a well-connected steel magnate, it is unlikely the paper will retain its objective, often anti-Kremlin perspective, said Boris Timoshenko, head of monitoring at the Glasnost Defense Foundation.

“Practice shows that Kommersant may well lose its face, its influence and its readership,” Timoshenko said, referring to Gazeta, Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. All these papers have been snapped up by Kremlin-friendly owners and have shifted their reporting away from serious, often probing journalism to more tabloid-style coverage.

Timoshenko noted that Gazeta, also bought by a steel magnate, Vladimir Lisin, had “joined the row of those colorful, superficially successful but bland publications.”

Kommersant has a circulation of nearly 123,000 and is distributed in 16 cities in Russia. Since July, there has been a Kommersant Ukraine edition.

In an interview late Wednesday, Usmanov said of the paper: “I’ve been a kommersant for, what, 20 years, and a fan of Kommersant for 15. I’d have been a fool to pass up this opportunity.”

The paper is the flagship publication of Kommersant Publishing House, which is expected to earn $70.4 million this year, with a net profit of $15 million.

The publishing house also owns the magazines Dengi, Vlast, Avtopilot and Molotok, among others. Molotok, a weekly glossy for teenagers, was recently attacked by authorities for publishing obscene photographs and sex advice.

Usmanov, with no known experience or assets in media, will complete the purchase of the publishing house using a recently registered offshore firm, Mediaholding, which has no other assets. Usmanov said the deal was worth about $200 million, while Kommersant reported Thursday that it was more than $300 million, citing sources close to the deal.

Borodulin, the chief editor, said Usmanov would meet the newspaper’s staff after Sept. 15. On Thursday, members of Usmanov’s business team paid a visit to Kommersant’s offices in a former school building northwest of the city center.

Usmanov is also the president of Gazprominvestholding, a 100 percent subsidiary of Gazprom. In that capacity, he is charged with keeping Gazprom’s debt in check and handling some of the gas monopoly’s assets.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, he spent some time behind bars on fraud charges. Following his release, he built a fortune in the iron-ore market. With partners Vasily Anisimov and State Duma Deputy Andrei Skoch, Usmanov cobbled together a 45 percent share of the market. The holding company controlling these assets is Metalloinvest; all three have equal shares. Forbes magazine estimates Usmanov’s fortune to be $3.1 billion.

A third senior Kommersant source suggested that Chukotka governor and former oil and aluminum magnate Roman Abramovich had acted as a middleman in the Kommersant sale. There was speculation Thursday that Abramovich might have bought the paper from its former owner, Boris Berezovsky ally Badri Patarkatsishvili, before turning it over to Usmanov.

A spokesman for Millhouse, Abramovich’s holding company, dubbed the speculation “just another rumor of the day.”

Berezovsky, the owner of Kommersant until he sold it to Patarkatsishvili earlier this year, said late Thursday that he had no detailed knowledge about the transaction.

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

Is Kommersant in the Kremlin’s Gunsights?

RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday that “the director general of the Kommersant publishing house confirmed that negotiations on the sale of the company to a Russian businessman are underway. ‘I do not want to make any comments,’ Demyan Kudryavtsev said. ‘But the deal is underway.’ He said the publishing house is being sold to Alisher Usmanov, the owner of Metalloinvest holding, and that the deal satisfied both parties. The company’s previous owner, businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili, earlier said he planned to sell 100% of his publishing business for no less than its market value, estimated at $200 million. Speculation is already rife that this is a move by the Kremlin against one of the last major bastions of critical media in the country. La Russophobe would just like to say for the record that if Kommersant is coopted by the Kremlin she will lose a significant source of insight about Russia and will consider it the beginning of the end for Russia, the first nail in Russia’s Neo-Soviet coffin. It hasn’t happened yet and now is the time to act to prevent it. The Moscow Times reports:

Senior Kommersant editors Thursday cast doubt on Alisher Usmanov’s claim that he would not tamper with the newspaper’s editorial policy after he acquired it.

“It would be too early to say now whether I believe promises that the editorial policy of Kommersant will be left unchanged,” chief editor Vladislav Borodulin told RIA-Novosti while attending a Beijing forum of editors of Chinese and Russian media.

Another senior Kommersant staffer was more blunt. “All this talk of this being some kind of private investment — give me a break,” he said. Several senior staff members may soon leave, he added.

A senior writer at the paper confirmed that deputy editor Alexander Shadrin, responsible for business coverage, resigned Wednesday.

Tatyana Lysova, the top editor at Vedomosti, Kommersant’s main rival, expressed deep reservations about the change in ownership. “We like to see a strong competitor,” she said. “In the immediate period after the sale, business readers’ trust in Kommersant is likely to drop.”

Alluding to Usmanov’s senior role at state-controlled Gazprom and his metals assets, Lysova added: “Everyone knows about Usmanov and his range of businesses. At first, readers will be skeptical, looking to spot his influence in the coverage of certain topics.”

On Wednesday, Usmanov said he had no plans to change Kommersant’s editorial policy. Usmanov is expected to acquire the paper formally within days.

Analysts, meanwhile, buttressed Lysova, saying the newspaper could indeed be facing a drop in readership and other staff departures.

Since Usmanov is a well-connected steel magnate, it is unlikely the paper will retain its objective, often anti-Kremlin perspective, said Boris Timoshenko, head of monitoring at the Glasnost Defense Foundation.

“Practice shows that Kommersant may well lose its face, its influence and its readership,” Timoshenko said, referring to Gazeta, Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. All these papers have been snapped up by Kremlin-friendly owners and have shifted their reporting away from serious, often probing journalism to more tabloid-style coverage.

Timoshenko noted that Gazeta, also bought by a steel magnate, Vladimir Lisin, had “joined the row of those colorful, superficially successful but bland publications.”

Kommersant has a circulation of nearly 123,000 and is distributed in 16 cities in Russia. Since July, there has been a Kommersant Ukraine edition.

In an interview late Wednesday, Usmanov said of the paper: “I’ve been a kommersant for, what, 20 years, and a fan of Kommersant for 15. I’d have been a fool to pass up this opportunity.”

The paper is the flagship publication of Kommersant Publishing House, which is expected to earn $70.4 million this year, with a net profit of $15 million.

The publishing house also owns the magazines Dengi, Vlast, Avtopilot and Molotok, among others. Molotok, a weekly glossy for teenagers, was recently attacked by authorities for publishing obscene photographs and sex advice.

Usmanov, with no known experience or assets in media, will complete the purchase of the publishing house using a recently registered offshore firm, Mediaholding, which has no other assets. Usmanov said the deal was worth about $200 million, while Kommersant reported Thursday that it was more than $300 million, citing sources close to the deal.

Borodulin, the chief editor, said Usmanov would meet the newspaper’s staff after Sept. 15. On Thursday, members of Usmanov’s business team paid a visit to Kommersant’s offices in a former school building northwest of the city center.

Usmanov is also the president of Gazprominvestholding, a 100 percent subsidiary of Gazprom. In that capacity, he is charged with keeping Gazprom’s debt in check and handling some of the gas monopoly’s assets.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, he spent some time behind bars on fraud charges. Following his release, he built a fortune in the iron-ore market. With partners Vasily Anisimov and State Duma Deputy Andrei Skoch, Usmanov cobbled together a 45 percent share of the market. The holding company controlling these assets is Metalloinvest; all three have equal shares. Forbes magazine estimates Usmanov’s fortune to be $3.1 billion.

A third senior Kommersant source suggested that Chukotka governor and former oil and aluminum magnate Roman Abramovich had acted as a middleman in the Kommersant sale. There was speculation Thursday that Abramovich might have bought the paper from its former owner, Boris Berezovsky ally Badri Patarkatsishvili, before turning it over to Usmanov.

A spokesman for Millhouse, Abramovich’s holding company, dubbed the speculation “just another rumor of the day.”

Berezovsky, the owner of Kommersant until he sold it to Patarkatsishvili earlier this year, said late Thursday that he had no detailed knowledge about the transaction.

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

Is Kommersant in the Kremlin’s Gunsights?

RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday that “the director general of the Kommersant publishing house confirmed that negotiations on the sale of the company to a Russian businessman are underway. ‘I do not want to make any comments,’ Demyan Kudryavtsev said. ‘But the deal is underway.’ He said the publishing house is being sold to Alisher Usmanov, the owner of Metalloinvest holding, and that the deal satisfied both parties. The company’s previous owner, businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili, earlier said he planned to sell 100% of his publishing business for no less than its market value, estimated at $200 million. Speculation is already rife that this is a move by the Kremlin against one of the last major bastions of critical media in the country. La Russophobe would just like to say for the record that if Kommersant is coopted by the Kremlin she will lose a significant source of insight about Russia and will consider it the beginning of the end for Russia, the first nail in Russia’s Neo-Soviet coffin. It hasn’t happened yet and now is the time to act to prevent it. The Moscow Times reports:

Senior Kommersant editors Thursday cast doubt on Alisher Usmanov’s claim that he would not tamper with the newspaper’s editorial policy after he acquired it.

“It would be too early to say now whether I believe promises that the editorial policy of Kommersant will be left unchanged,” chief editor Vladislav Borodulin told RIA-Novosti while attending a Beijing forum of editors of Chinese and Russian media.

Another senior Kommersant staffer was more blunt. “All this talk of this being some kind of private investment — give me a break,” he said. Several senior staff members may soon leave, he added.

A senior writer at the paper confirmed that deputy editor Alexander Shadrin, responsible for business coverage, resigned Wednesday.

Tatyana Lysova, the top editor at Vedomosti, Kommersant’s main rival, expressed deep reservations about the change in ownership. “We like to see a strong competitor,” she said. “In the immediate period after the sale, business readers’ trust in Kommersant is likely to drop.”

Alluding to Usmanov’s senior role at state-controlled Gazprom and his metals assets, Lysova added: “Everyone knows about Usmanov and his range of businesses. At first, readers will be skeptical, looking to spot his influence in the coverage of certain topics.”

On Wednesday, Usmanov said he had no plans to change Kommersant’s editorial policy. Usmanov is expected to acquire the paper formally within days.

Analysts, meanwhile, buttressed Lysova, saying the newspaper could indeed be facing a drop in readership and other staff departures.

Since Usmanov is a well-connected steel magnate, it is unlikely the paper will retain its objective, often anti-Kremlin perspective, said Boris Timoshenko, head of monitoring at the Glasnost Defense Foundation.

“Practice shows that Kommersant may well lose its face, its influence and its readership,” Timoshenko said, referring to Gazeta, Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. All these papers have been snapped up by Kremlin-friendly owners and have shifted their reporting away from serious, often probing journalism to more tabloid-style coverage.

Timoshenko noted that Gazeta, also bought by a steel magnate, Vladimir Lisin, had “joined the row of those colorful, superficially successful but bland publications.”

Kommersant has a circulation of nearly 123,000 and is distributed in 16 cities in Russia. Since July, there has been a Kommersant Ukraine edition.

In an interview late Wednesday, Usmanov said of the paper: “I’ve been a kommersant for, what, 20 years, and a fan of Kommersant for 15. I’d have been a fool to pass up this opportunity.”

The paper is the flagship publication of Kommersant Publishing House, which is expected to earn $70.4 million this year, with a net profit of $15 million.

The publishing house also owns the magazines Dengi, Vlast, Avtopilot and Molotok, among others. Molotok, a weekly glossy for teenagers, was recently attacked by authorities for publishing obscene photographs and sex advice.

Usmanov, with no known experience or assets in media, will complete the purchase of the publishing house using a recently registered offshore firm, Mediaholding, which has no other assets. Usmanov said the deal was worth about $200 million, while Kommersant reported Thursday that it was more than $300 million, citing sources close to the deal.

Borodulin, the chief editor, said Usmanov would meet the newspaper’s staff after Sept. 15. On Thursday, members of Usmanov’s business team paid a visit to Kommersant’s offices in a former school building northwest of the city center.

Usmanov is also the president of Gazprominvestholding, a 100 percent subsidiary of Gazprom. In that capacity, he is charged with keeping Gazprom’s debt in check and handling some of the gas monopoly’s assets.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, he spent some time behind bars on fraud charges. Following his release, he built a fortune in the iron-ore market. With partners Vasily Anisimov and State Duma Deputy Andrei Skoch, Usmanov cobbled together a 45 percent share of the market. The holding company controlling these assets is Metalloinvest; all three have equal shares. Forbes magazine estimates Usmanov’s fortune to be $3.1 billion.

A third senior Kommersant source suggested that Chukotka governor and former oil and aluminum magnate Roman Abramovich had acted as a middleman in the Kommersant sale. There was speculation Thursday that Abramovich might have bought the paper from its former owner, Boris Berezovsky ally Badri Patarkatsishvili, before turning it over to Usmanov.

A spokesman for Millhouse, Abramovich’s holding company, dubbed the speculation “just another rumor of the day.”

Berezovsky, the owner of Kommersant until he sold it to Patarkatsishvili earlier this year, said late Thursday that he had no detailed knowledge about the transaction.

Thanks for reading La Russophobe !

Is Kommersant in the Kremlin’s Gunsights?

RIA Novosti reported on Wednesday that “the director general of the Kommersant publishing house confirmed that negotiations on the sale of the company to a Russian businessman are underway. ‘I do not want to make any comments,’ Demyan Kudryavtsev said. ‘But the deal is underway.’ He said the publishing house is being sold to Alisher Usmanov, the owner of Metalloinvest holding, and that the deal satisfied both parties. The company’s previous owner, businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili, earlier said he planned to sell 100% of his publishing business for no less than its market value, estimated at $200 million. Speculation is already rife that this is a move by the Kremlin against one of the last major bastions of critical media in the country. La Russophobe would just like to say for the record that if Kommersant is coopted by the Kremlin she will lose a significant source of insight about Russia and will consider it the beginning of the end for Russia, the first nail in Russia’s Neo-Soviet coffin. It hasn’t happened yet and now is the time to act to prevent it. The Moscow Times reports:

Senior Kommersant editors Thursday cast doubt on Alisher Usmanov’s claim that he would not tamper with the newspaper’s editorial policy after he acquired it.

“It would be too early to say now whether I believe promises that the editorial policy of Kommersant will be left unchanged,” chief editor Vladislav Borodulin told RIA-Novosti while attending a Beijing forum of editors of Chinese and Russian media.

Another senior Kommersant staffer was more blunt. “All this talk of this being some kind of private investment — give me a break,” he said. Several senior staff members may soon leave, he added.

A senior writer at the paper confirmed that deputy editor Alexander Shadrin, responsible for business coverage, resigned Wednesday.

Tatyana Lysova, the top editor at Vedomosti, Kommersant’s main rival, expressed deep reservations about the change in ownership. “We like to see a strong competitor,” she said. “In the immediate period after the sale, business readers’ trust in Kommersant is likely to drop.”

Alluding to Usmanov’s senior role at state-controlled Gazprom and his metals assets, Lysova added: “Everyone knows about Usmanov and his range of businesses. At first, readers will be skeptical, looking to spot his influence in the coverage of certain topics.”

On Wednesday, Usmanov said he had no plans to change Kommersant’s editorial policy. Usmanov is expected to acquire the paper formally within days.

Analysts, meanwhile, buttressed Lysova, saying the newspaper could indeed be facing a drop in readership and other staff departures.

Since Usmanov is a well-connected steel magnate, it is unlikely the paper will retain its objective, often anti-Kremlin perspective, said Boris Timoshenko, head of monitoring at the Glasnost Defense Foundation.

“Practice shows that Kommersant may well lose its face, its influence and its readership,” Timoshenko said, referring to Gazeta, Izvestia and Nezavisimaya Gazeta. All these papers have been snapped up by Kremlin-friendly owners and have shifted their reporting away from serious, often probing journalism to more tabloid-style coverage.

Timoshenko noted that Gazeta, also bought by a steel magnate, Vladimir Lisin, had “joined the row of those colorful, superficially successful but bland publications.”

Kommersant has a circulation of nearly 123,000 and is distributed in 16 cities in Russia. Since July, there has been a Kommersant Ukraine edition.

In an interview late Wednesday, Usmanov said of the paper: “I’ve been a kommersant for, what, 20 years, and a fan of Kommersant for 15. I’d have been a fool to pass up this opportunity.”

The paper is the flagship publication of Kommersant Publishing House, which is expected to earn $70.4 million this year, with a net profit of $15 million.

The publishing house also owns the magazines Dengi, Vlast, Avtopilot and Molotok, among others. Molotok, a weekly glossy for teenagers, was recently attacked by authorities for publishing obscene photographs and sex advice.

Usmanov, with no known experience or assets in media, will complete the purchase of the publishing house using a recently registered offshore firm, Mediaholding, which has no other assets. Usmanov said the deal was worth about $200 million, while Kommersant reported Thursday that it was more than $300 million, citing sources close to the deal.

Borodulin, the chief editor, said Usmanov would meet the newspaper’s staff after Sept. 15. On Thursday, members of Usmanov’s business team paid a visit to Kommersant’s offices in a former school building northwest of the city center.

Usmanov is also the president of Gazprominvestholding, a 100 percent subsidiary of Gazprom. In that capacity, he is charged with keeping Gazprom’s debt in check and handling some of the gas monopoly’s assets.

Prior to the collapse of the Soviet Union, he spent some time behind bars on fraud charges. Following his release, he built a fortune in the iron-ore market. With partners Vasily Anisimov and State Duma Deputy Andrei Skoch, Usmanov cobbled together a 45 percent share of the market. The holding company controlling these assets is Metalloinvest; all three have equal shares. Forbes magazine estimates Usmanov’s fortune to be $3.1 billion.

A third senior Kommersant source suggested that Chukotka governor and former oil and aluminum magnate Roman Abramovich had acted as a middleman in the Kommersant sale. There was speculation Thursday that Abramovich might have bought the paper from its former owner, Boris Berezovsky ally Badri Patarkatsishvili, before turning it over to Usmanov.

A spokesman for Millhouse, Abramovich’s holding company, dubbed the speculation “just another rumor of the day.”

Berezovsky, the owner of Kommersant until he sold it to Patarkatsishvili earlier this year, said late Thursday that he had no detailed knowledge about the transaction.

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