Transformation of the Political Media Space in the Countries of the Eurasian Economic Union

The transformation of the political media space in the EAEU as an ongoing process is due to technological progress, changes in the legislative regulation of the media sphere in states, and changing relations between governments, the media and the public. Global digitalization has influenced the ways in which political ideas and the agenda of Eurasian integration are communicated to the public in the EAEU member states, and increased government control over digital mass communications has raised complex issues related to security and democratic accountability. Aim. To analyze the conditions, problems and opportunities of the process of transformation of the political media space in the member countries of the Eurasian Economic Union. Tasks. To identify the factors influencing the transformation of the political media space in the EAEU, to identify the role and importance of social networks and mass media in the communicative interaction of political structures with the public, to study the level of trust in the media and the predominance of language in mass communications in the formation of information messages, public attitudes towards Russia in the EAEU countries in the political media discourse, to explore the possibility of harmonizing legislation on mass media the EAEU countries. Methods. The research methodology is based on structural, comparative analysis, statistical and logical methods of market research in the process of studying management mechanisms at the market and legislative levels of the advertising and media markets, content analysis of open sources of information in studying the issue of trust in the media and attitudes towards Eurasian integration among the citizens of the EAEU. Results. The necessity of creating a unified media space of the EAEU based on common cultural, spiritual, moral, historical and civilizational values of the participating countries, which contributes to shaping the image of the EAEU on the world stage, creating an image of Eurasian integration in the media sphere, is revealed. The transformation of the political media space in the EAEU is associated with such trends as: despite the digital inequality among the EAEU states, the online audience continues to increase; the growing popularity of social networks, of which banned  in Russia, dominates in other EAEU member states.; the priority of language in the media remains with Russian, despite the different attitudes towards the Russian Federation among the peoples of the EAEU; a decrease in trust in traditional media; the spread of disinformation and fake news in the online environment; the lack of systematic information on the activities of the EAEU, its importance and potential for citizens; the lack of a unified supranational legislative regulation of media communications. Conclusions. The transformation of the political media space in the EAEU reflects the complex interaction of state control, media consolidation, technological changes, the dynamics of digital media, external influence and public involvement in the agenda of integration of the EAEU countries. The study showed a number of problems and ways to solve them related to the process of transformation of the political media space in the EAEU countries: media consumption in the EAEU countries is mainly reorienting towards digital media, displacing traditional media by increasing the online audience; Therefore, the popularity of social networks should be used for interaction between political structures and the public; the need to harmonize supranational media regulation in the EAEU countries based on the formation of a unified legal framework for information integration, as well as the agenda on the importance of integration processes, creating an image of the EAEU and the participating countries. Due to the heterogeneity and inconsistency of national media markets, differences in models of mass information, and media consumption, the integration of the media space is complicated, so it is advisable to form a unified strategy for diverse media coverage of integration processes based on a systematic method of presenting information.

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