Against the backdrop of what is happening, the CEO and founder of Dozhd, Natalya Sindeeva, published a very emotional video in which, through tears, she asked the dismissed Alexei Korostelev, as well as Vladimir Romensky and Margarita Lyutova, who left the channel as a sign of solidarity, to return to the team.
“How can the TV channel continue to live if we committed meanness towards the person who is with us? Perhaps after this statement everything will collapse, perhaps there will be no TV channel, but no one will need this shit when… What values are we talking about all the time? How to live with it? I dont know. <…> Lesh, Rit, Romensky – guys, return to the "Rain". It was a mistake, the Ukrainians may not forgive us for it, but it was a mistake, people make mistakes.”
Earlier, Ivars Abolins, chairman of the National Council for Electronic Media of Latvia, noted that representatives of Dozhd had asked to conduct hearings on the case of the TV channel in Russian, Delfi reports .
“We are disappointed with the attitude of Dozhd — representatives of the channel arrived at the NEPLP hearings without an interpreter and wanted to speak Russian, so the hearings did not take place,” Abolnish said.
At the same time, Dozhd's editor-in-chief Tikhon Dzyadko told Novaya Gazeta Evropa that the channel's representatives "have never offered to conduct official discussions in a non-state language of Latvia."
“The council dedicated to depriving Dozhd of a broadcasting license was held without the participation of representatives of the TV channel, we were not invited to it. Up to this point, we have discussed various issues with the council many times, Russian was used as a working language by agreement of the parties, an interpreter was not required, ”said Dzyadko.
This is how Latvian politicians, current and former, commented on this story in a conversation with The Insider.
Andrey Yudin, Member of the Latvian Saeima
“I am only an observer and can share my point of view. Some time ago, there was a very positive attitude towards Dozhd in Latvia, the news that Dozhd would be broadcasting from Latvia was received very positively, the channel was talked about as a source of high-quality and objective information – an alternative to the official Kremlin media. But gradually this attitude changed. Latvia has never been the target audience of Dozhd, they worked for a different audience. The expectations of the Latvian resident were not very important to the channel, in turn, the ideas of the inhabitants of Latvia, obviously, did not coincide with how the editors of Dozhd see the situation.
In my opinion, the problem is that Dozhd associates itself with Russia. Yes, they oppose Putin and the Kremlin, but the people who live in Russia have not exactly imperial thinking, but they have this “great Russia” somewhere deep in their subconscious.
I have been to Dozhd, they called me and asked questions. This is a very fine line, but we think differently – people who associate themselves with a big country and with a small country. And even for those who say that they condemn the empire and Putinism, belonging to a large country leaves its mark, and it is felt. In one of the first communications [with the channel], I was asked the question: “Why don't you want to accept the mobilized? You are Europe, you are obliged.” We don't have to. We help those who are in emergency situations, we help individually, but not always in the way that progressively thinking Russians imagine.
As for Dozhd itself, it is clear that what they are doing is of great benefit, and I do not want to stigmatize them. When people in Russia who say in the polls: “Well done Putin!” turn on “Rain”, it’s great, I don’t lose hope that they can understand something and change their attitude under the influence of this information.
In Latvia, there are Russian-speaking and Latvian-speaking. I speak Russian with you, but in fact I am not an active consumer of Russian-language media content. The “pro-Putin” residents of Latvia have their own request, “Rain” is too anti-Putin for them. For a Latvian pro-European person, a clear distinction would be clear: “Yes, we give information, we in no way support what is happening.” From our point of view, Dozhd often maneuvers, tries to sit on two chairs: Dozhd admits that war is bad, calls war a war, clearly says that Ukraine is being bombed by the Russian army, but this association with Russian military personnel, this "our boys" is incomprehensible to us. This is a red rag that causes indignation and bewilderment.
If Dozhd is inconvenient for the Kremlin, and Latvia decides [to revoke the license], this does not mean that we are working hand in hand. For us [the inhabitants of Latvia] it is unacceptable that people, although not so clearly, continue to associate themselves with the country that attacked Ukraine and is waging a war of conquest. They chose the position: "We will speak loudly, we will be on the side of the world and against aggression, but sometimes we will allow ourselves something that causes mixed reactions."
I do not consider Dozhd to be evil, I believe that the editors of Dozhd perform an important function and help those who are able to think, but get lost, and help someone to wake up and understand – and for this we thank them. But there is another audience that expects more from them – and this is what they cannot provide because they are stuck in their audience.
Yes, a decision has been made regarding them, but this does not mean that they will not be able to continue working. We will not see them in Latvia, but the editorial office has the equipment and opportunities to work in those countries that have no complaints about them.”
Vyacheslav Dombrowski, Minister of Education and Science of Latvia in 2013-2014
“From my point of view and the point of view of many in Latvia, the decision of the regulator – the regulator is independent – does not reflect the opinion of the authorities or the political establishment. Opinions at the moment are very different. Yes, there are many who applaud the regulator's decision, but there are many, including myself, who consider it disproportionate.
Unfortunately, our NEPLP (National Electronic Media Council) presented a certain gift to the Kremlin, Peskov and Putin.”
Earlier, Putin's press secretary Dmitry Peskov said that the revocation of the license to broadcast the Dozhd TV channel in Latvia demonstrates the "falseness of illusions" about the fact that it is better and freer abroad than in Russia.
“All the time it seems to someone that somewhere is better than at home. And all the time it seems to someone that somewhere there is freedom, but at home there is no freedom. This is one of the clearest examples that demonstrates the fallacy of such illusions,” he said.