Yakut television in USSR: factors of formation, infrastructure, information policy

Abstract

The article considers the process of organization and development of television in the Republic of Sakha (Yakutia) in USSR from the establishment of the first TV studio to the collapse of the USSR (1961-1991). It is the first attempt to describe the factors of the appearance of television, the organization of infrastructure and activities of a television studio in the national republic in the conditions of party-state policy. The purpose of the article is to identify the conditions, stages, features of the organization and development of Yakut television. Also we have a goal to determine the content and forms of information policy implementation in the Soviet period. To achieve the goal, empirical research methods were used: analysis of archival documents, statistical and literary sources, periodical materials. Basing on archival documents, we identified three stages of technological development of regional television: the 1960s –  material and technical base establishment, training, mastering television genres, techniques and technologies of live broadcasting; the 1970s‒1980s – infrastructure development, Union-wide centralized broadcasting network establishment, the emergence of satellite and color television, the introduction of video recording and linear installation, organization of belt broadcasting throughout the country; The late 1980s and early 1990s saw the abandonment of film news technologies, the use of linear and nonlinear editing, and the testing of new video formats. In Soviet times, television employees were tasked with the ideological, political, cultural and aesthetic education of the population by promoting achievements in all areas of the country's life. According to archival data, Yakut television sought to cover various socially significant topics in the field of foreign and domestic policy, labor achievements, history, culture, art, health and sports. The broadcast was conducted in Yakut and Russian. The main genres were news, reports and conversations in the studio. For 30 years, the creative teams of the TV studio have managed to create samples of serious TV journalism, art productions, documentaries and feature films. During the years of “perestroika”, the Yakut TV Studio set a course to strengthen regional identity and form national culture.