A panel discussion "Hero of Our Time: How to Create and Promote Contemporary Role Models for Young People?" will be held at the National Centre RUSSIA
The panel discussion of the Expert Institute of Social Research titled "Hero of Our Time: How to Create and Promote Contemporary Role Models for Young People?" will be held on 25 February 2026 at 18:00 at the National Centre RUSSIA. The discussion will focus on shaping and promoting positive images of modern heroes for young audiences, as well as on the role of the state in working with values, meanings and cultural reference points for the new generation.
Key discussion topics include:
— Who is a "hero of our time", and which qualities make such a figure convincing and meaningful for young people?
— Why is state involvement in creating and promoting heroes for youth becoming a strategic necessity?
— How do heroes and media images influence the formation of values, attitudes and behavioural models among children and teenagers?
— Which narrative and visual formulas make it possible to create heroes capable of competing with global popular content?
— How and in which formats should heroes be integrated into the media space, social networks and cultural and entertainment content?
Special attention will be given to the anatomy of the modern hero, the mechanisms of embedding such figures into the media environment, and the search for effective formats and platforms where these images can gain demand and be organically embraced by young audiences.
The discussion will be moderated by Nikita Setov, Deputy Director General of the Polylog Consulting Group and expert at the Expert Institute of Social Research. Speakers will include Marina Kim, First Deputy Chair of the State Duma Committee on Information Policy, Information Technologies and Communications; Yulia Ablets, Deputy Director General of the ANO "Dialogue Regions"; Vladimir Shapovalov, Head of Projects at the Department for Engagement with the Expert Community of the ANO "Expert Institute of Social Research", Associate Professor at the Department of Comparative Politics of MGIMO University and Candidate of Historical Sciences; as well as Yekaterina Yakovleva, Head of RT Documentary Broadcasting and General Producer of the festival "RT.Doc: The Time of Our Heroes".
