Leaves from a simple journalist quickly turned into a real star of domestic TV. Despite the great fame, Vladislav in life was quite modest.
Possible versions and hypotheses
According to the memoirs of his girlfriend Albina, for a long time the couple huddled in her workshop, so we are not talking about the financial motives for the murder. What was Listev killed in this case? Among modern versions, personal motives and the theory of dishonesty of business partners are especially popular.
“Vladislav Listyev was killed!” Photos and reports from the newspapers caused a stir in the post-Soviet society - the goal of the criminals was not a private entrepreneur or deputy, but a journalist. It was then that the versions about the political subtext in a difficult matter sprang up. Possible leaders and executors of contract killings were sought both at the top of power structures and at a party of influential businessmen.
Event set
The difficult situation in Ostankino in 1993 led to the need for change.
The constant lack of state capital greatly impeded the development of the channel. In 1994, out of the required 1.3 trillion, the company was able to raise 320 billion.
To solve the problem, the editorial offices were given the opportunity to earn money on their own, but it did not bring any relief at all - even seasoned journalists of that time categorically did not know how to work in the advertising field, including Vladislav Nikolaevich Listev. Who killed him, how and why, is unknown to this day, but many colleagues associate the event with a lot of money, which spun in Ostankino.
Drama in Ostankino
Special custom-made promotional materials were distributed on television - commercial organizations and some political parties willingly paid a lot for such stories.
Typically, a similar "advertising study" cost the client several thousand dollars, ranging from 5-20. The poor quality of the programs was the subject of a headache for journalists and caused constant discontent of the channel’s management.
Who benefits?
Information about the initiator of the proposal to corporate Ostankino is somewhat contradictory.
According to the main version, the founder of the REN TV production center, Lesnevskaya Irena, is responsible for this ; the second version calls the name of Alexander Lyubimov.
Lyubimov’s plan provided excellent prerequisites for the formation of a nationwide TV, which was presented to Lyubimov by the joint-stock community. Actually, this theory existed due to an interview by Boris Berezovsky in the summer of 1994. In a television interview with the Vlast newspaper in April 2005, he said that the news agency was conceived as “the most powerful mechanism of socio-political struggle”, “an independent television channel for the whole country” . For what Listyev was killed, for money or for politics, after frank interviews with the tycoon it was impossible to understand more.
The role of Berezovsky
This mechanism, according to Berezovsky’s speeches, was needed for the purpose of a future war with the Communists, who, after the failure in the 1993 Duma, would definitely want retaliation and revenge on the media. In November 1994, Yeltsin signed on the Order on the Formation of Public Domestic Television. The company’s shareholders included LogoVAZ and United Bank of Berezovsky, a correspondent bank of MENATEP Khodorkovsky, a correspondent bank of Stolichny Smolensky, Alfa Bank of Friedman and Aven, Mikrodin Efanova. Notes “Vladislav Listev killed!”, A close-up photo and version of the investigation have since and forever acquired an unpleasant aftertaste of big politics and big money.
Listyev’s plans
51% of the shares of the new Ostankin were held by the state, and 49% were listed in personal assets. Since September 1994, Vlad Listyev was appointed vice president of the Academy of Domestic TV. Colleagues and friends of the journalist mentioned that he literally dreamed of another television. He was curious to imagine a different path of development of his brainchild, and not to observe the complete degradation of the ethers.
Although his range of interests extended only to the production and production of new projects, there is a standard answer to the question “What killed Listyev for?” - for money, a lot of money.
Undoubtedly, he was interested in working as a film producer, however, such an attitude to the position imposed responsibility on other employees on the affairs of the television channel. Vlad did not delve into debt loans and similar accounting trivia, his talent was different.
Memoirs of colleagues
The journalist Razbash recalled: “A few days after the terrible event with Listyev, they called our number. After a short pause, a cold, absolutely unemotional voice said something in the spirit: "If you start to twitch, you will go after him ...". Most colleagues received a call asking them not to cover the incident in the press and not to inflate a public scandal. What Vlad Listyev was killed for - we do not know and did not know, but we began to dig in all possible directions precisely after a series of calls from unknown numbers. ”
During the investigation period, about 2 thousand eyewitnesses, witnesses and possible participants in the events were questioned. 10 different people confessed to the offense, but these versions were not subsequently confirmed. To the question “Why were Listyev killed?” Most of them did not even have a clear answer, and even more so of motives and opportunities.
FSB version
Hypotheses were repeatedly expressed that Boris Berezovsky and his henchmen were the real customer, then a “Solntsevo trace” was formed, leading to the criminal group of the same name.
The well-known fact is information about the systematic ejection from the media space by the Leaf Company of Global Media Systems, whose interests were protected by the “Solntsevsky man” Kartsev. The “family” hypothesis was also worked out.
FSB lieutenant colonel Litvinenko indirectly accused Korzhakov of planning and directing the murder of a journalist in his book.
On April 21, 2009, according to the current investigation procedure, the process was temporarily suspended “due to the inability to identify the person responsible for the crime”. However, the search was soon resumed, as there was evidence of the participation in the case of a member of the Tambov group, Yuri Kolchin, who was serving a sentence for the murder of Galina Starovoitova.
He was the harbinger of a new era of TV - Vladislav Nikolaevich Listev. Who killed the journalist and why left the body will remain a mystery for the coming decades. In contrast to the already existing hypotheses, the aforementioned Kolchin threw a completely new and somewhat unexpected version, and also brought an investigation to major criminal authorities. However, according to the criminal, Berezovsky was still the customer of the murder. After the deed was done, the oligarch paid the Tambovites for silence for a long time.
Yuri Skuratov, who served as the prosecutor general during the scandalous affair, wrote a book detailing the people, versions and motives of the crime.
The novel “Who killed Vlad?” Did not answer these questions. Who killed Listyev remained unknown. Although the main chapters were repeated by investigative materials, the individual persons of the work were called by other names. The lines of the narrative also differed slightly from the actual ones. Despite the skepticism of the general public and the cries of paid articles, Skuratov mentioned that among the real killers of Listyev there are no people named Kolchin. Why they killed Listyev and how authorities are connected with this is a mystery.
Interview with an investigator
After the publication of the novel, controversy unfolded around the events in the book and in reality, the author's supporters and opponents proved various versions and called more and more new surnames.
Who killed Listyev is a question without a clear answer today, since people interested in the death of a journalist are quite alive and well. Several details of the case helped clarify the numerous interviews given by Peter Triboy, the investigator:
- Why did they kill Listyev? Who did it?
- The situation is transparent.
- Where are the charges and trial for criminals? Did anyone dare to interfere with the investigation?
“Not really.” There were threats when in the process I found interesting facts; no one repaired open interference. Justice is a matter of evidence. If lawyers challenge the prosecutor’s version, the main defendants will run away and we will never see them. Since they are all wealthy people, a fair trial in other states should not be expected.
- Why did they kill Vladislav Listyev? Is the political elite involved in this?
- Some still have power, some are long displaced. There are many motives, it is impossible to identify one specific one, since journalistic activity forced Listyev to take part in various spheres of the political, financial and public life of the state.
To the question: “In what year Listyev was killed?” The current young generation is not able to answer, and for his contemporaries, the journalist was a real harbinger of a new TV, the main propagandist and pioneer of high broadcasting standards.
After the death of his ideologist, ORT became an ordinary politically biased channel that participated in various public relations campaigns of various figures. Since then, the political activities of the media giant have been criticized more than once, but the project has no new inspiration.