“We wanted the best, but it turned out as always.” This comment by Russia’s former Prime Minister Viktor Chernomyrdin is a familiar one to many Russians. Its meaning: Things just got bad, or worse. It’s also a fitting description of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) strategy regarding the Eurovision Song Contest in Kyiv.
The EBU wanted to avoid a scandal and enable Russia to take part in this year’s competition – in spite of the annexation of Crimea and Russian support for the separatists in eastern Ukraine. Instead, they’ve ended up with one of the biggest scandals in Eurovision history.
