Siberia in German (German-speaking) Television Documentaries

Abstract

Documentaries about Siberia occupy a permanent place on German and Austrian television. They have a profound influence because they define not only the image of Siberia, but also of the Russian North and maybe even of all Russia. The portrayal is based on a productive combination of the horrible and the beautiful, which was elaborated already before the 17th century. Despite the fact that the narrative remains relatively invariable, three standard variants can be identified: 1) Siberia as the great adventure where “real men” are needed; 2) Siberia as an alluring landscape with an emphasis on the beauty of nature; 3) Siberia as a faraway cold land where people live their everyday lives regardless of the circumstances.

Keywords

• television documentaries
• portrayal of siberia
• the russian north
• german television