Topic: Joseph Stalin

Peter Carl Fabergé: How Communism crushed the Faberge egg

Peter Carl Fabergé created a jeweled-egg empire, commemorated Wednesday by a Google doodle. But as the Russian Revolution toppled the Czar, it also upended the famous line of Imperial Faberge eggs.

Liberation Square

Egyptian journalist Ashraf Khalil brings insight and thorough reporting to his account of the end of the Hosni Mubarak government.

North Korea not the only offender: 6 official photo fudgings

As state manipulators of the media go, few can compare to North Korea, which found it necessary to doctor an official photograph of Kim Jong-il's funeral procession. 

Just as governments are finding it easier to use technology to manipulate images, so too is the public finding it easier to spot such digital trickery. Here are six noteworthy attempts by governments to shape media coverage through image manipulation.

George F. Kennan: An American Life

John Lewis Gaddis's biography is an important examination of a man who shaped the current American way of life.

Could Iran copy the 'beast'? US aircraft have been reverse-engineered before

Let’s dial back to July 31, 1944, when a B-29 heavy bomber nicknamed Ramp Tramp ended up making an emergency landing at a Soviet base in Vladivostok.

Periodic table to welcome two new elements

Livermorium and flerovium could soon occupy the 114 and 116 spots on the periodic table of the elements. The names for the elements, which were synthesized a decade ago, were announced Thursday by the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry.

Putin's next marquee moment: Russia's presidency

Vladimir Putin is almost certain to return as Russia's president next March. Is this Russian-style democracy or evidence of the country's reversion to authoritarian traditions?

Russia's Bolshoi Theater back from the brink of destruction

The iconic Bolshoi Theater, home to the famed ballet and opera troupes, reopens its doors today after a nearly $1 billion renovation to restore the once-crumbling theater to its 19th-century glory.

Tax the rich: Should millionaires really pay more?

The fight over raising levies on the wealthy, a theme of the 'Occupy Wall Street' protests, is about more than money. It's a clash over fundamental American values.

The cost of a Putin presidency 2.0 in Russia

When Putin returns to the presidency next year, it will mean stability in Russia. But that comes at a cost – stagnation, as Russia groans under autocracy, corruption, cronyism, and social ills. The US must be realistic about Russia's strengths and weaknesses.

Estonia's rise, encapsulated in a piano's history

A piano of Estonian origin, bearing the country's name, was popular in the Soviet Union but lost its prestige when the empire collapsed. A young pianist is now reviving its image.

Google's gift to Red Square's St. Basil Cathedral: a doodle

Moscow marks the 450-year anniversary of St. Basil's Cathedral, the iconic church built in Red Square to honor Ivan the Terrible's victory over Russia's former Tatar conquerors.

How Russians survived militant atheism to embrace God

Today, less than 20 years after the collapse of the officially atheistic Soviet Union, Russia has emerged as the most God-believing nation in Europe. That's a testament to the devotion of babushkas who kept the flames of faith alive in the face of state-sponsored repression.

Commencement 2011: what 10 eminent speakers told graduates

Here are the Monitor's hand-picked highlights from the 2011 commencement season.

Area 51 loses mystique for some after accusations of hoax

Area 51 was not the site of extraterrestrial landing, but rather a Russian hoax, says investigative journalist Annie Jacobsen.

Bahrain's Sunni rulers target Shiite mosques

The Bahraini regime has bulldozed dozens of Shiite mosques or other religious structures in the crackdown on a mainly Shiite opposition movement.

To tax is to destroy

Taxing citizens destroys freedom, prosperity, and market efficiency

Autocrats and the road to ruin

From Libya to Ivory Coast, North Korea to Zimbabwe, one-man rule leads to colossal misrule.

Russians shouldn’t bury Lenin until they uncover his lies

Russians must face up to Lenin’s brutal legacy – as Germans did Hitler’s.

Why Leaders Lie

The lies of leaders are often condoned – if they succeed.

Why Russia is warming to the West

Stepping out of Putin's shadow, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev has made bold moves recently that tighten ties with Washington. Senate ratification of the new START treaty would give Obama a chance to complete the US-Russian 'reset.'

Travels in Siberia

New Yorker writer Ian Frazier makes a foray to Siberia, the "greatest horrible country in the world.”

Disappointed Obama isn't FDR? Let's remember the real deal about the New Deal.

High on hope, supporters heralded Obama as the new FDR. Two years later, many feel disillusioned. But FDR's actual record puts today's gripes about Obama into perspective.