In March 1985, Mikhail Gorbachev became General Secretary of the Soviet Union at a crisis point in the nation’s history. The Soviet economy had been a victim of serious stagnation during the era of Leonid Brezhnev. The country needed a strong, young and dynamic reformer to lead the country, and after a quick succession of three General Secretaries in as many years (all three of whom died in office), Gorbachev emerged as a leader ready to make some serious changes in order to advance the Soviet Union’s economy to compete with the West. Part of Gorbachev’s ‘new thinking’ included a dual policy of perestroika (restructuring) and glasnost (openness). Both of these had the aim of reviving and refreshing the nation’s socialist standing, but to quote Robert Service, ‘Gorbachev, in trying to prevent the descent of the system into general crisis, proved instrumental in bringing forward that crisis and destroying the [Soviet Union]’ (Service 1998: 447).

The policy of glasnost in particular is the theme of this essay, and it will look at the reasons for starting the policy in the Soviet Union, and the ways in which this ‘new thinking’ was introduced to the people. Also, it will look at the effects of glasnost, both positive and negative, and will attempt to account for why it contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union. 

Glasnost was, in the words of David Lane, ‘a device to precipitate change, to involve the public in new policies, and to weaken forces opposed to the new incumbent political elite’ (Lane 1992: 16). It was, in essence, an attempt to revitalise and modernise Soviet society. The legacy of the Brezhnev era was one of decay and stagnation, and Gorbachev considered it necessary for the nation to rid itself of these elements in order to recover. It was essentially a method of self-criticism, in which negative influences and opinions contrary to the state’s idea of ‘true’ socialism could be rooted out. It was hoped that, through encouraging greater freedom of speech and openness, the socialist base for the Soviet state could be renewed and improved, and that this (coupled with the policy of perestroika) would result in a more prosperous and successful nation. Glasnost was, in Gorbachev’s view, necessary for the development of a modern and thriving economy. 

Gorbachev also wanted to remove any corrupt or distorting elements from the bureaucracy, and to make local officials and bosses more accountable for their actions. This corruption and exploitation of the working classes was seen as one of the factors in making the Soviet society sluggish and on the verge of crumbling, and it was hoped that by doing this, it would remove any repressive actions by the bosses, give the workers greater awareness, and generally improve the workplace as a result of this. On various trips to places such as Vladivostock and Khabarovsk, Gorbachev had experienced much ‘incompetence and indifference to the everyday lives of ordinary people…openness and glasnost were, of course, the last thing that the local bosses needed’ (Gorbachev 1996: 250). Through a channel of more accurate information and data, therefore, the workers could be able to check any abuse of power made by the local bosses and try and prevent it from happening. In other words, this gave them a greater say in the running of the enterprise, and this led to a later awakening of public and personal opinion.