Legal relations of state and media

The study investigates the forms of state and media relations, their legal aspects, and their special aspects in the multi-level legal model that has developed in the Russian Federation. The author highlights the need for a balance of public and private interests in the analyzed relations. This balance is important for the society, the control over authorities, and the protection of the rights and freedoms of individuals. The study explores a spectrum of state-media relations, singling out the most important types. These are legal relations concerning the inception and cessation of media operations and as part of the federal government’s control (supervisory role) in ensuring compliance with the laws of the Russian Federation on the media; economic relations in terms of financing and state support; political relations during the development of state policy on information and its distribution; and socio-cultural relations in terms of governing public opinion on state policy. The paper is focused on the unique multi-level legal model of relations of the state and the media in the Russian Federation. This model is characterized by the combination of declarative provisions guaranteeing freedom of speech and the independence of the press with a system of state regulation of public and personal information security. This combination of legal regulation creates a complex and dynamic system requiring the continuous scholarly elaboration.