The famous Russian journalist, media manager and co-founder of a number of television companies - NTV, Most-Media and NTV Plus, Oleg Borisovich Dobrodeev - currently heads the All-Russian Television and Radio Company (FSUE VGTRK). Also, the journalist is a member of the Russian Academy of Motion Picture Arts, Sciences and Television.
Oleg Dobrodeev: biography, origin
The future journalist was born in the capital of Russia, in the family of Boris Dobrodeev, October 28, 1959. His father worked for many years as a screenwriter, and was awarded the Lenin Prize. Interest in television and journalism took shape in the early years.
The beginning of the way
Oleg Dobrodeev was educated at the History Department of Moscow State University, at the same time the future Russian politician Konstantin Zatulin, the future NTV presenter Vladimir Kara-Murza, and famous historians Aleksey Levykin and Elena Osokina studied at the faculty.
In 1981, the future media manager graduated from Moscow State University, the next year he entered graduate school at the Institute of the International Labor Movement. Having completed the training, he did not defend his dissertation, since he did not show interest in the topics of scientific work proposed by the leadership of the university.
Beginning of work biography
Oleg Borisovich begins his career immediately after graduation from the Institute of the USA and Canada of the Academy of Sciences of the Soviet Union. He works as a research fellow at the university.
Work on television
Oleg Dobrodeev from 1983 begins a long period of work on television. He begins his career in journalism with the rank of editor-in-chief on the Central Television of the State Radio and Television of the Soviet Union. At this moment, Dobrodeev gets invaluable experience, which will be useful to him for the implementation of many of his projects.
Over the seven years of his work here, Oleg Dobrodeev was a commentator on the Vremya program, as well as a correspondent and presenter of the 120 Minutes program, and worked as deputy chief editor for the information service.
During these years, a talented journalist has come up with various initiatives to improve the work of TV. In particular, in 1989, together with Alexander Tikhomirov and Eduard Sagalaev, Dobrodeev proposed creating a daily seven-day television program on the channel. The program did not last long; in early 1990, its exit was banned at the direction of the Communist Party secretariat and the central television leadership. The reason for this decision was two reports on how Soviet troops were brought into Baku. The author of the stories was Oleg Dobrodeev. In 1990, the journalist took an active part in the creation of the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company - the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company.
1990-1991 He is the director of the Vesti information program. This program, in the opinion of many reputable experts, in the early nineties was considered a kind of know-how in terms of the provision of news information, significantly different from the “Time” program. Since October 1991, he has been the head of the editorial board of TAI, the television information agency at the All-Union State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company, which in 1992 was reformatted to Ostankino Broadcasting Company.
Work on NTV
Oleg Borisovich Dobrodeev is rightfully considered one of the founders of the leading domestic NTV channel. The formation of the channel was preceded by the creation in 1992 of the weekly Itogi analytical program, which was initiated jointly with Eugene Kiselev. First, the informational and analytical program is broadcast on Ostankino, but the next year the creators of Itogi together with Alexei Tsyvarev and Igor Malyshenko establish a limited liability partnership of the same name.
In turn, on July 14, 1993, Itogi LLP initiated the creation of the NTV television channel. In the new structure, Oleg Dobrodeev holds the position of vice president of the company and heads the editorial board of the information service. In the same year, an agreement was concluded with the fifth channel of St. Petersburg that NTV broadcasts would be broadcast on this resource. At the end of the year, NTV receives its frequencies for broadcasting.
Oleg Dobrodeev’s activities on NTV were highly productive. In tandem with like-minded people, a high-quality and popular information product was created that quickly brings the channel to the forefront in broadcasting.
Dobrodeev brought many of his colleagues from Ostankino with him to the new television. Among them are presenters and correspondents: Mikhail Osokin, Tatyana Mitkova, Vladimir Luskanov and Alexander Gerasimov.
Creation of a number of channels, activities in a media holding
In 1996, the media manager establishes NTV-Plus CJSC together with a team of like-minded people. And at the beginning of next year, on the initiative of Dobrodeev, a Media-Bridge was organized, chaired by businessman Vladimir Gusinsky. Then, on the basis of Media-Most, an NTV holding appears as part of such television companies: NTV, NTV-Kino, TNT, NTV-Plus, Ekho Moskvy radio station, Bonum-1, NTV-Profit , NTV-Design. In the newly formed structure, Oleg Borisovich becomes one of the leaders, in particular, he holds the post of director general of NTV television company.
At the post of general director of VGTRK
In 2000, Dobrodeev left NTV and went to work at the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company and was appointed chairman of this organization. The departure from NTV and the transition to Russian television in the media was perceived as a sensation, which instantly scattered across all TV channels, including NTV.
The journalist himself did not specifically report on the reasons for the termination of cooperation with NTV, dwelling on the wording of disagreement with the policy of the channel’s leadership. According to a number of media reports, the reason for the disagreement concerned the unwillingness of the company’s owner, media magnate Vladimir Gusinsky, to support the second Chechen war on television, which helped increase the political rating of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Since April 2000, Dobrodeev also heads the editorial board of electronic media on Russia TV channel and the state-owned Vesti company.
In April 2001, in the midst of a scandal involving NTV leadership in a corruption case, resigned, which was rejected by the head of state.
In July 2004, Dobrodeev - General Director of VGTRK (FSUE VGTRK). The appointment to a new position was evidence of the need for reforms in the organization. Russian television was supposed to reach a qualitatively new level, and a qualified media manager should help in this matter, and Dobrodeyev at that time was the best candidate for the position.
As a result of the reform, a number of subsidiaries, such as state-owned shopping centers in the Russian regions, the Kultura and Rossiya channels, some radio stations (Mayak, Radio of Russia, Mayak-24, and many others, and there were more than ninety of them ) became branches of VGTRK.
Defendant in a series of sanctions lists
Oleg Dobrodeev also appears on the list of sanctions for expressing his opinion on a number of geopolitical issues and the activities of some politicians:
- For expressing his position on the annexation of Crimea to Russia, as well as for assessing events related to the armed conflict in the South-East of Ukraine, the journalist was included in the sanctions list by the Ukrainian authorities.
- The Russian opposition in the person of Vladimir Kara-Murza and Mikhail Kasyanov initiated the inclusion of Dobrodeev and some other heads of federal channels in the "Nemtsov list". The opposition’s accusations were: hate speech, propaganda against the politician Boris Nemtsov, which, in their opinion, led to his death. Persons included in this list, it is proposed not to be allowed into the United States of America, to freeze their financial assets.
Browser Family
The journalist was married only once. Together with his wife, Marina Arnoldovna, they raised their son Boris. Practically nothing is known about Boris Dobrodeev himself.
Dmitry Borisovich Dobrodeev, brother of a media manager, born in 1950 - writer, orientalist and translator, lives in the Czech Republic. He wrote a number of works, including “Journey to Tunisia”, “Return to the Union” and a number of others.
Journalist Achievements
The contribution of the journalist to the development of the media space is highly appreciated both at the state level and among various public organizations. Since 1995 Oleg Borisovich has been a member of the Academy of Russian Television. In 2002, he was elected to the National Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences of Russia. For his many years of journalism, Dobrodeev was awarded various insignia, both domestic and foreign.
Recognition of merit
What awards and prizes does Oleg Dobrodeev have:
- Order of Honor - awarded in 1999.
- Acknowledgments of the President of the Russian Federation (2007, 2008).
- Two Orders of Merit for the Fatherland of the third and fourth degrees (2010, 2006).
- Awards of the Russian Orthodox Church: Order of St. Sergius of Radonezh (second degree in 2014) and the Right Prince Danilo of Moscow (second degree in 2007).
- Order of Merit of the French Republic - 2001
- Laureate of the State Prize of the Russian Federation for educational activities and popularization of culture and achievements of science (2011)
Out of duty...
She is fond of reading memoirs and fiction, and also prefers watching documentaries. The journalist loves outdoor activities and sports; he considers billiards to be his hobby. He is fond of studying foreign languages. Knows French and English.
About the place and role of journalism in society, about interaction with politics
In his many interviews, discussing the role of journalism, Dobrodeev pays great attention to the role of the information service, both on television and in the life of society as a whole. “Information dictates a lifestyle and lifestyle, disciplines, helps to quickly make the right decisions,” the journalist said in an interview with Kommersant.
Oleg Dobrodeev is skeptical about the possibility for a journalist to engage in political activities, believing that politics makes a person dependent. He also noted in an interview that he did not know an example of a journalist leaving for politics. He was outraged by the news that he was on the sanctions list of the West. What caused the sanctions against Oleg Dobrodeev is still not known.
Throughout his career, the journalist himself tried to distance himself from politics. But at the same time, the media manager is convinced that information workers should try to cooperate with the authorities, otherwise it will be difficult for them to deliver information to the masses and, thus, they will not be able to fulfill their main mission.