Awakened by Russia’s conflict with Ukraine, the Baltic countries are trying to figure out how to win the hearts and minds of their Russian minorities who are lured by Russian TV channels with seemingly endless federal financing. The worried Western allies are stepping up funds for journalist training and Russian-language programming, but there are more undercurrents to tackle in the Baltics, reaching beyond providing more and objective information.

Despite the wars and turbulences in world around us, for the Baltic media 2014 was a year of relative stability. No big international media players entered the Baltic media market, but none left, too. Estonian tycoons continued the trend to acquire outlets in the other Baltic countries. The most profitable Baltic media house was TV3 – Latvia who grossed 3.08 millions euros, annual survey “Baltic Media Health Check 2014 – 2015” reports.

For the first time ever journalists representing all 28 European Union (EU) states have teamed up to file complaints with the European Court of Justice against the European Parliament (EP). The institution refused to grant the journalists’ requests for access to information related to how the 751 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) spend their allowances. Journalists filed complaints with the Court of Justice on 13 November.

Their mothers are overworked from making ends meet and they often raise their children alone. Schools could be springboards to opportunity for their kids — not only by offering knowledge, but also by motivating and developing character. Can schools in Latvia do that?

The small schools in Latvia’s poor rural districts frequently serve as havens, but their school children receive an inferior education compared to their urban peers.

Compared to Soviet propaganda, which targeted ideological supporters of socialism and communism, Putin’s propaganda machine targets individuals who hold different – often conflicting – worldviews.

With one hand, Kremlin strangles non-governmental organizations in Russia. With another, it generously supports the defenders of its interests in the Baltics.

A disgraced Russian banker, an Estonian-born advertising guru and Baltic oil traders kept money in Switzerland away from the prying eyes of the local tax authorities.

Vitaly Mansky, a Russian documentary director, knows exactly when he decided to establish a bolt hole outside of the Russian Federation. It was the spring of 2014, and Mansky was in Spain for a film festival, watching the news in his hotel room. An anchor at one of the Kremlin-controlled news stations reported that Russia’s parliament had allowed President Vladimir Putin to use the army to protect his compatriots in other countries. In other words, they had legalized the annexation of Crimea and provided support for pro-Russian combatants in Eastern Ukraine.