Sashider Rajesh

"Spinning Boris: Spinning the Campaign or Spinning History?"

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in late 1991, Boris Yeltsin emerged as a strong point for the rapidly derailing country. He strived to turn Russia away from its socialist system and implement capitalist and democratic ideals by opening the economy and modeling Western tactics, thereby building relations with the West. However, his changes came with great cost, and as the 1996 election drew closer, Yeltsin’s popularity dropped due to economic turmoil and various crises, like the First Chechen War that Russia not only lost but also tarnished their improving reputation in the West. This, combined with the fact that his opponent was a Communist who emphatically rebuked any Western ideals, forced Yeltsin’s campaign to take drastic measures to win the reelection. One such move was hiring 3 American political consultants to assist the campaign in pulling off one of the most improbable wins in political history.

This controversial arrangement was made public after the reelection and neither the consultants nor Russia denied each other’s involvement. The controversial part was the extent to which American involvement influenced the election. Some sources emphasize that the Americans were in the center of all campaign activities, while other sources argue that the campaign barely used the Americans’ input. Through the former, the film Spinning Boris recounts the 1996 reelection and portrays Russians as being dependent on American culture and politics. For example, the consultants insist on “going negative” against Yeltsin’s opponent to push Yeltsin’s polling numbers over the majority. Despite multiple attempts to get the campaign’s approval, the Russians don’t accept it until the end, when they realize that it is necessary to win. Since this was an American idea, the audience saw this as a crucial turning point for the election. However, historians have found that Yeltsin’s campaign used this idea before the consultants were even hired, which emphasizes how the film sought to show the Russians as needing the highly influential American involvement to advance their society.

The film also strived to make the Russians appear highly secretive about not only their operations but also their attempts to hide the Americans’ involvement. The film showed that the consultants were given their own floor in the hotel to prevent any communication with other campaign members or anyone outside. However, sources have revealed that Tatiana Dyachenko, their primary campaign connection, worked in a room across from the consultants. This emphasizes how the film exaggerated the plight of the consultants and portrayed the Russians as being more secretive than they were to show audiences how they weren’t willing to admit their admiration and dependence on the American system.

Since the film was produced a relatively short time after the end of the Cold War and the 1996 reelection, it showed American audiences that Russia was not a competition to America in any aspect, especially since any Russian societal advancements was due to American influences in the deepest part of the country: the government.