TV channels in Russia are required to allocate airtime for election debates, except they can’t actually hold them: candidates stay silent on camera or don’t show up

TV channels in Russia are required to allocate airtime for election debates, except they can’t actually hold them: candidates stay silent on camera or don’t show up

The law requires state-run TV channels to give politicians free airtime, and those politicians, in turn, are supposed to spend half of it on debates and discussions. Far from everyone is willing to appear live on air: lecterns stand empty, participants stare silently into the cameras, and TV channels delete recordings of the broadcasts.

We have collected the brightest and most absurd moments from these appearances.

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