REGULATIONS ON THE MAIN DEPARTMENT FOR LITERATURE AND PUBLISHING (GOLOVLIT) AS A SOURCE ON THE HISTORY OF THE FORMATION OF SOVIET CENSORSHIP POLICY

Abstract

This article analyzes the “Regulations on the Main Directorate for Literature and Publishing (Golovlit)” as a key regulatory document that laid the foundations of the Soviet system of political censorship in the 1920s and 1930s. Adopted in the early years of the Soviet state, the document not only set the organizational framework for Golovlit’s activities but also outlined the ideological principles underpinning the system’s operation. The article examines the structure and main provisions of the Regulations, with particular attention to the mechanisms that enabled the state to control both the content of printed materials and the entire publishing process – from book production to the distribution of literature, periodicals, and other printed works. The study demonstrates that the Regulations served as an instrument for reshaping social relations by turning literature and publishing into components of the ideological apparatus, designed to strengthen Bolshevik power. This ensured the dominance of a single ideology and the suppression of alternative viewpoints, underscoring the broader significance of the Regulations in shaping Soviet political culture. The document played a decisive role in institutionalizing practices of total social control. A comparative analysis of selected provisions of the Regulations with earlier instructions and decrees makes it possible to trace the evolution of Soviet censorship policy – from localized press control to a comprehensive system of ideological influence. The analysis highlights how censorship became an integral part of the establishment of a totalitarian regime, which pursued two main tasks: first, to present the political and economic situation of the Soviet Union in a manner favorable to the authorities; and second, to discredit opponents of the regime. The article is particularly relevant today, in light of the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, as it raises broader issues of freedom of speech and information security.