Analysis of the dynamics of the Sami networks in the Russian Federation and Murmansk region

The paper addresses problems connected with socio-cultural functions of virtual network communities of the Kola Sami in the “ethnic Internet” segment, which determines both the relevance and novelty of the research. The aim of the research is to conduct a comparative analysis of the productivity of the regional and federal Russian Sami Internet communities in discussing social and socio-cultural problems of the Sami ethnic group and posting materials on relevant topics. Therefore, an integral task is to identify interacting destructive processes hindering the communities’ activities both online and offline. Non-inclusive online surveillance and content analysis of cyber-communities and electronic resources were used. The study found that by this year most of the represented communities have suspended their activities and are struggling to implement planned sociocultural offline projects. Most of the Sami population in the Murmansk region have been slow to engage in online activities or are not involved in them at all, despite the Kola Sami online communities’ aspirations for wider and more mutual contacts with the regional, national, and foreign public, mass media, and authorities. The research helped to identify functional and technological reasons for the discontinuation of the said online activities.