Russia Unfiltered

How the 1990s Created Putin’s Russia (with Dr. Jeff Hawn)

This week on Russia Unfiltered, Jonny Tickle, Jeremy Morris, and James Pearce are joined by their first ever guest: Dr. Jeff Hawn, research fellow in international history at the London School of Economics. Together, they dive deep into the political chaos of the 1990s and ask one of the biggest questions in modern Russian history: was Putin’s Russia inevitable? The conversation explores Boris Yeltsin’s presidency, the 1993 constitutional crisis, the collapse of Soviet institutions, and the failed attempt to build a law-based democratic state after the fall of the USSR. Jeff argues that Russia was not doomed to authoritarianism, and that many of the political structures shaping Russia today were created during Yeltsin’s struggle for power. The discussion also covers shock therapy, the rise of oligarchic politics, the weakness of Russian federalism, comparisons with Ukraine’s post-Soviet path, and why so many Russians today still see the 1990s as a traumatic decade. Along the way, the hosts debate whether Russia could still experience another democratic opening in the future, or whether the legacy of the 1990s continues to shape the country’s trajectory. This podcast is an independent project and does not represent the views of our employers or affiliated institutions.

Western Academia on Russia in 2026: War, Access and Activism

This week on Russia Unfiltered, Jonny Tickle, Jeremy Morris and James Pearce take a closer look at the state of Russia-focused academia in the West. With Jeremy heading to the annual British Association for Slavic and Eastern European Studies (BASEES) conference, we use the moment to ask a bigger question: what has happened to the field since 2022? Four years into the war, access to Russia is limited, funding has shifted, and the balance between research and public commentary is changing. We discuss whether the discipline is now dominated by war-related topics, how trends like decolonisation and Ukrainian studies are reshaping the landscape, and what gets lost when fieldwork becomes difficult or impossible. The conversation also turns to the realities of academic conferences, who gets to attend, who gets excluded, and whether these spaces still reflect genuine scholarship or something closer to advocacy. Along the way, we explore how research trends move in cycles, from Soviet everyday life to cultural history, and why some of the most interesting work today is happening far away from headline politics. This podcast is an independent project and does not represent the views of our employers or affiliated institutions.

Mr. Nobody Against Putin: What the Oscar-Winning Film Gets Right (and Wrong)

This week on Russia Unfiltered, Jonny Tickle, Jeremy Morris and James C Pearce take a deep dive into Mr. Nobody Against Putin — the Oscar-winning documentary that’s now been banned in Russia. The film follows a school employee who secretly filmed the gradual militarisation of a provincial Russian school. It’s been widely praised abroad, but it’s also sparked a wave of criticism from Russians, Ukrainians and filmmakers alike. In this episode, we go beyond the headlines and ask what the film actually shows. Is it an authentic window into life inside Russia, or a story shaped for Western audiences? How representative is it of Russian schools, and does it really prove what many people think it proves? We also tackle the uncomfortable questions. – Did the children and teachers give meaningful consent? – Is the film emotionally manipulative, or just doing what all documentaries do? – And does banning it in Russia actually strengthen its message? Along the way, we draw on real experience inside Russian schools and discuss how education, ideology and everyday life actually intersect on the ground. This podcast is an independent project and does not represent the views of our employers or affiliated institutions.

Is Moscow’s Internet Being Switched Off?

James C Pearce, Jeremy Morris and Jonny Tickle examine the sudden mobile internet outages across central Moscow and what they reveal about how a hyper-digital city functions when connectivity breaks down. They discuss the practical consequences, from payments and taxis to everyday routines that now depend entirely on mobile data, and why even short disruptions expose deeper vulnerabilities in a system built on constant connectivity. The conversation explores competing explanations, from security measures and infrastructure testing to a broader pattern of increasing control over digital space. They look at the logic behind restricting access not just to platforms but to the internet itself, and how this fits into a wider trend of tightening oversight during wartime. They also turn to the future of messaging in Russia, including the push toward domestic alternatives like Max, the resilience of Telegram, and the growing arms race between regulation and workarounds such as VPNs and alternative apps. Along the way, they discuss fraud, digital dependence, and whether Russia is moving toward a more controlled, self-contained internet model. This podcast is an independent project and does not represent the views of our employers or affiliated institutions.

How Has Moscow Changed in 2026?

Jonny Tickle is joined in person by Jeremy Morris for a rare walk-and-talk episode recorded in Moscow at the end of his research trip. They discuss first impressions from Moscow, Penza and St Petersburg, focusing on the small, everyday details that are easy to miss but reveal deeper economic and social shifts. The conversation explores churn in the hospitality sector, labour shortages, changing migration patterns and the uneven realities of the war economy, from packed holiday weekends to empty midweek cafés. They compare Moscow with the regions, asking what you can only learn by being there, and why conversations in kitchens, bars and on the street often tell a different story from polling and media narratives. They also discuss shifting expectations about the future, from postponed life plans to a broader sense of pessimism, alongside the resilience of small businesses and the lingering legacy of Soviet-era infrastructure. The episode ends with a wider reflection on fieldwork, access and the limits of studying Russia from a distance. This podcast is an independent project and does not represent the views of our employers or affiliated institutions.