Mezhdunarodnik as a Vocation: Formation of Soviet International News Workers, 1945–1964

Abstract

The Soviet Union was an excellent promoter of its mission abroad, with multiple organizations working to spread the positive word about the socialist superpower. Its international news organizations were crucial intermediaries between domestic and foreign audiences, shaping the lenses through which readers viewed other countries, cultures, and political landscapes. Amid the overgrown bureaucratic labyrinth required to maintain such operations, people were key to their functionality. Journalists animated the system by bringing their experience and expertise to the table. Yet, little is known about the genesis of the profession of *mezhdunarodnik*, the structure of the international journalistic community in the USSR, its members' motivations, and career paths.