Russian Court OKs Vote to Strip Yeltsin of Media Control

Russia’s Constitutional Court dealt a sharp blow to President Boris N. Yeltsin on Thursday by upholding the conservative-run Parliament’s vote to strip him of control over state-owned television and news agencies. But whether the verdict actually means anything in the confusing turmoil of Russian politics became the topic of debate.

The Itar-Tass news agency, the Russian Information Agency and Russian Television--the affected media--kept operating as before. Yeltsin’s information czar, Mikhail Poltoranin, defiantly mocked the court as a “political tool” of the Congress of People’s Deputies, which opposes Yeltsin.

A more alarmist view came from the Izvestia newspaper, itself the target of an unsuccessful takeover bid by Parliament. The paper declared that Thursday’s ruling spells the end of “semi-freedom of speech” in Russian media.

The court ruled that the Congress had not exceeded its powers March 29 when it voted to take control of the media outlets.

“The Constitutional Court, by its decision, has rejected the monopoly of the executive branch over the mass media,” Communist lawmaker Mikhail G. Astafiev said.