Television of the Republic of Tatarstan as an instrument of national identity

The study of the role of regional television in national identification has gained particular relevance in the context of contemporary processes of mediatisation and globalisation. The theoretical significance of the results is related to the identification of the techniques of media identification in a historical perspective, as well as to the discovery of the factors influencing the identification process. The authors present the results of a study of both the historical experience of the development of state television in the territory of Tatarstan and the modern practice of the TV channel “Tatarstan - New Century”, which is currently considered the main national channel in the republic. The degree to which the topic of regional television development in Russia and around the world has been studied in terms of the specifics of national broadcasting, and studies which address the problem of ethnic identification through the media have been taken into account. A large body of empirical material was used to identify traditions and innovations in the activities of regional television, whose mission is to preserve and develop the native language, cultural and historical heritage. Through the analysis of empirical data the continuity of regional television traditions in relation to the national component is shown for the first time.