World War I and the Press. Part 2. Periodical Press of the Russian Far East of 1914-1916 on Causes, Nature and Purpose of War
The article deals with the formation of ideas about the causes, nature and goals of World War I in the periodical press of the Russian Far East during 1914-1916. Such newspapers as «Dal’niy Vostok», «Priamurskie vedomosti», «Priamur’e», «Dalyokaya okraina», «Ussuriyskiy kray», «Tekushchiy den’», «Blagoveshchenskoe utro» and others are used as sources. The study shows that, although in general the provincial Russian society took a patriotic stance, the attitude to the war was different in its different segments and depended on the level of education and social status. Representatives of the bourgeoisie and intellectuals accepted the war completely and expected great benefits from it for Russia. In the press of the type under study («Dal’niy Vostok», «Dalekaya okraina»), the blame for unleashing war was laid on Germany, the image of a German enemy was created, and the people were called upon to sacrifice everything for the sake of victory. Middle and lower strata of the population were determined not so unequivocally. The war for them was more likely a source of disaster. Because of this, the “yellow” (mass) press intended for them («Tekushchiy den’», «Blagoveshchenskoe utro») turned out to be less contaminated with chauvinism and Germanophobia than reputable quality publications