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Over the last decades, scholars have reported a high level of xenophobia in Russia, which persists and spreads amidst all strata of the population. This shows the significance of the migration issue in the country and its topicality in the public discourse. However, the explanatory models used to analyze the perception of immigrants in Western countries do not find absolute empirical support in Russia. For this reason, researchers emphasize the importance of media discourse as a leading factor in constructing attitudes toward the foreign migrants in Russia. We take into account, firstly, the persistence of xenophobic attitudes among Russians, and secondly — the role of the migrants’ image, constructed by mass media, in shaping the perception of the immigrants among the locals. In this regard, this article hypothesizes that despite the official ban of the “hate language” and ethnization of crime, the negative representation of immigrants not only persists in the Russian media discourse, but is unfortunately increasing. To test this hypothesis, we utilize the results of research on the representation of immigration in Russian media discourse published between 2010 and 2020, which we analyze in the methodological framework of critical discourse analysis. We conclude that at the end of the current decade, there have been certain improvements in the media coverage of the migration issue, caused by the shift of the spotlight onto other problems, thus, the negative images of immigrants simply were not a part of the media agenda. On the one hand, this can help reduce ethnic tensions, although on the other, it complicates the development of the culture of interaction between the local and immigrant communities, since the national and cultural characteristics of migrants and their experience of living in Russia remain underrepresented in the media.

Economy digitalisation creates new market mechanisms and regional development opportunities. In certain circumstances, the C2C (consumer-to-consumer) Internet market can act as a basis for establishing an entrepreneurial culture; subsequently, it can turn into an economic growth point of a region. However, since the entrepreneurial potential of regional digital markets varies, it is crucial to investigate these differences and the reasons for their occurrence. In the present study, the entrepreneurial potential of residents is measured through their digital inclusion in C2C Internet markets. The article analyses and characterises the active sellers of the Avito online classified in Russian regions. The data were collected using the content analysis of ads posted by individuals on the Avito platform (n = 1,597). Correlation and factor analysis were used for interpretation. The conducted analysis showed the following results. First, the study revealed a relationship between regional digitalisation and the size of the group of active sellers: a higher level of digitalisation of a territory (federal district) means that more residents start to actively use Avito for e-commerce. Second, the paper demonstrated the importance of locality, since the number of active sellers among Avito users is bigger in large cities. Third, it was proved that additional opportunities provided by the C2C market are more attractive for women than for men. The obtained findings can be used by authorities planning the regional development, as well as by researchers of the Internet economy describing and analysing the digitalisation processes. Further studies may identify and examine in detail the factors defining digital inclusion in C2C markets of Russian regions.

Russia and the post-Soviet countries of Central Asia are close partners, having ties not only in the economy, politics and culture, but also in the field of security. The linguistic aspect of interaction is also of great importance. This article analyzes the presence of the Russian language in the curricula of Central Asian universities, the presence of Central Asian languages in the curricula of Russian universities, and the level of bilateral cooperation in this area. The study is conducted within the framework of the methodological structure of the theory of``soft power'' by J. Nye and the concept of``competitive identity of the state'' by S. Anholt. The findings of our study present arguments in support of, firstly, the development of an effective strategy to preserve the role of the Russian language as a unifying cultural factor and an instrument of international communication and cooperation, and, secondly, the possibility of preparation specialists in Central Asia in Russia with a good knowledge of regional languages in order to ensure strategic planning, evaluation of joint projects and the study of modern literature. Publishing services provided by Knowledge E Ksenia Muratshina et al. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use and redistribution provided that the original author and source are credited. Selection and Peer-review under the responsibility of the 4th СTPE 2019 Conference Committee. 4th СTPE 2019 in Central Asia [1], a significant number of schools where instruction is in Russian [2], and the prestige of Russian education, researchers note a decrease in interest in learning Russian among young people in favor of English, Chinese and Turkish [3]. This can be explained by the growing influence of non-regional actors in Central Asia --the USA, China, the European Union and Turkey, who use various instruments of soft and hard power. Given the fact that mutually beneficial cultural and historical ties between Russia and Central Asia can be at risk in this situation, for Russia it is important, firstly, to develop an effective strategy to preserve the role of the Russian language as a unifying cultural factor and an instrument of international communication and cooperation, and, secondly, to provide training specialists in Central Asian studies with good knowledge of regional languages in order to ensure strategic planning, evaluation of joint projects and the study of modern literature. This article analyzes the presence of the Russian language in the curriculum of Central Asian universities, the presence of Central Asian languages in the curriculum of Russian universities and the level of bilateral cooperation in this area. These problems may be important in the context of developing a strategy for sustainable cultural cooperation between Russia and the post-Soviet space of Central Asia. MethodologyThe methodological framework of our study is set by the theories of``soft power'' developed by J. Nye (2004) [4], and of``c...

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