NOVYY KRAY AND CHERVONNAYA RUS’: A CASE STUDY IN RUSSIAN PRIVATE NEWSPAPER PUBLISHING IN LVOV, 1915

Of the six Russian newspapers that appeared in Lvov, which was under Russian administration from August 1914 to June 1915, only Novyykray and Chervonnaya Rus’ were privately owned; they were published in March- April and May-June 1915, respectively. Both papers have hitherto almost entirely escaped the attention of Russian historians, even as sources of information. The article demonstrates that, in effect, they constituted one and the same periodical, with identical layout, content, and publishing conditions. The closure of Novyy kray and the subsequent relaunch of the newspaper under a new title were linked to hostility on the part of the staff of the commander in chief of the armies of the Southwestern Front toward its publisher, N.I. Kapeller, who, in late 1914, had become embroiled in a high-profile controversy over the establishment of book and newspaper kiosks at railway stations in Galicia. The suppression of Novyу kraу testified to the weak position of the authorities of the Galician General-Governorate, who were compelled to revoke their own authorization of the paper and align themselves with the stance of the front headquarters. Shortly after Novyу kraу ceased to exist, the military authorities readily sanctioned the establishment of a new periodical under the title ChervonnayaRus’ . Its publisher was the former editor of Novyy kray , P.Ya. Kurnosov; everything else - from the location of the editorial office to the programme of the issues - remained unchanged. The minor differences in rhetoric between the two newspapers were conditioned by the deteriorating situation on the Southwestern Front: at the height of the enemy offensive in Galicia, ChervonnaiaRus’ had to devote greater attention to criticizing panic and encouraging the population. On the whole, despite competition from other Russian newspapers in Lvov and from the Russian press reaching the city from the interior, Novyykray and ChervonnayaRus’ enjoyed popularity among readers thanks to their varied and original content and their balanced attention to international news and local reports - a fact noted even by the Polish press of Lvov.