The TV Is Winning: 86:12

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Putin's propaganda machine is omnipresent, powerful, and well-oiled. Billions of dollars are spent each year to persuade naive and gullible viewers into believing that Russia is surrounded by hostile Western nations waiting to tear it apart. 

And, according to the same mantra, the only person who has the guts to stand up to those aggressive powers is Vladimir Putin himself, the holy Saviour of Mother Russia. 

Sounds illogical and far-fetched? Well, it isn't to anyone who is familiar with Russian TV programmes and Internet trolls. In reality, the situation is pretty scary. One might wonder how is it going to end? Everything we know from human history tells us it is not going to end well. 

More after the jump. 

Who Is Mr. Putin?

Vladimir Putin is still a mystery man for the rest of the world. You either love him or hate him. The great majority of Russians certainly support him: they like his tough macho image, his flat unsophisticated jokes and the fact that he alone "stands up to the West" and "protects Mother Russia". Whether those statements reflect the truth or not is subject to debate.

In this article, we will examine who is Mr. Putin and why Russians love him so much (hint: for the same reason they love Stalin and hate Gorbachev).

More after the jump.