Reading ‘between the lines’: How implicit language helps liberal media survive in authoritarian regimes. The Kommersant Telegram posts case study

Abstract

This case study demonstrates identification, explicitation, and validation of the implicatures found in the Kommersant (Russia) Telegram channel posts. It explores the primary reasons for Kommersant’s implicature use and the language means employed for the creation of the implicature. The contributors to the Kommersant Telegram channel use irony/sarcasm, creative neologisms, wordplay, metaphors, and legally imposed euphemisms for the expression of the implicit meaning. The use of implicatures is mainly motivated by the authors’ desire for self-protection and cooperation. Kommersant’s implicit language also contributes towards the creation of a circle of loyal readers who may enjoy explicitating the implicatures so as to feel they belong to a specific socio-political group. The multi-stage perceptual analysis substantiates the assumption that readers with prior knowledge of Kommersant’s style are more sensitive to its implicatures. The report also concludes that at times of rigid war-time media regulation in Russia, Kommersant’s reporters use a code of implicit expressions as a means to preserve a certain objectivity in their reporting and to maintain their loyal readership.