Aleksandr!Puskin and the commencements of modern journalism in Russia

Russian society has at all times been shaped by autocratic structures. Nevertheless, there were beginnings of an independent development of modern journalism in early 19(th) century Russia. Among the first Russian journalists was the poet Aleksandr Pugkin (17991837). Puskins letters and his programmatic publications demonstrate that the writer had already generated a mentality which is typical for modern journalists. However, an analysis of the material also reveals differences between Pugkins letters and those of his writings designed for publication. This finding hints at restraints for the journalistic profession under autocratic conditions with whom Russian journalism has to cope up to today.