Two Russians were stopped from hijacking this thread:
You are welcomed aboard.
Well, look forward to my Russian becoming good enough to understand what they’re arguing about on Echo Moscvy.
Mike, who doesn’t understand a word of it, has listened to a bit of Echo Mosckvy, and pronounced it to be “very shouty”. I think he has summed it up succinctly and accurately. Whatever it is they are talking about, the two male studio presenters are getting very excited and are shouting at each other, while the female presenter seems to be trying to calm them down. I can imagine that the phone-ins get very lively indeed 
I have found Echo Moskvi to be the best language learning resource I have ever encountered. Audio and text of interviews on a wide variety of subjects with a wide variety of views.
They seem to like to invite provocative commentators, but they also regularly interview Ambassadors, (some of whom like the US Ambassador speak excellent Russian), foreign ministers, journalists,including foreign journalists who speak excellent Russian, former ministers and advisers to the Russian government, many of whom are now in opposition, a wide range of politicians, from strong dissidents, to Tsarist imperialists, to Duma deputies, including the rabble rousing Zhirinovsky.
No, there is definitely no brainwashing at Echo Moskvi, although the editorial position of most of the Echo journalists is decidedly “liberal” pro-Western and anti-Stalinist and anti-Putin and his vertical power. But they invite all kinds of people and let them express their views. There is one program called Clinch where people often argue vehemently.
I do not want to get into a political debate here, but Echo is a great language learning resource because of the vehemence of the discussions.
Helen, I am sure you will soon understand Echo Mosvy, it is very engaging! The only thing to be afraid of is Mike swearing Russian at you. If only Steve could specify what is usually transcribed and where the transcripts are, as he has kindly done with 80 hours of Tolstoi, then I am sure you may bravely throw the heavy Tolstoi or easy Harry Poter away at Mike.
What people think about the Russian “пофигизм”? It is a quality to care about nothing: e.g. justice, politics, elections, (say, who is going be the next president), to care little about what really have happened (historical facts) and what are the myths. It is the quality which is thought to on the rise when ordinary people feel that, actually, nothing depends on them. It is the quality especially ascribed to the modern Russian youth. But may be I do’ not put it correctly. “Пофигизм” emerged in the discussion with Victor, who зге it as a local Russian phenomenon.
Errata: Victor, who put it as a local Russian phenomenon.
If you go to http://www.echo.msk.ru/interview. You will find the slate of interviews for today.
There is an interview with the Ukrainian Foreign Minister, a discussion on the “History” Olympics in Russian schools, a portrait of Bill Gates, a “clinch” or no holds barred argument about the Katyn massacre between one of the Echo regulars Sergei Buntman, and Maxim Shevchenko, the director of the Center for Strategic Studies of Religion and Politics of Modern World ( whom I would call a polemicist), (the sparks will fly there), an interview about anti-Chechen feelings in Russia, a discussion about the upcoming Olympics at Sochi with reference to Vancouver, and on and on, just one day’s worth. All have the sound and text available for download.
To see the text you just click on * Читать
To download the sound you click on слушать
Enjoy.
Thanks very much Steve.
Ilya: “What people think about the Russian “пофигизм”?”
don’t know what the situation in Russia is, but, I know what I think about Serbian “пофигизм” :). No, it’s not just Russian phenomenon and you are right when you say that it appears when people start feeling that nothing depends on them. For example, that no matter how they vote on next election - nothing is going to change 'because all the politicians are the same, they all care only about their personal interests…".
The worst thing about this ‘phenomenon’ is high threshold of tolerance for bad things around them. Corruption becomes accepted as a norm, violent crimes do not provoke to much reaction from the public, nobody protests (at least not off line 
) against controversial laws about to be passed…Basically, everything gets forgotten after few days.
I do not know what the solution is once public gets into that state of mind…
about Ekho - it is very good, but too bad I got too fed up with Serbian politics and daily news in the past that I do not have much interests to listen about those stuff now. There are ПЕРЕДАЧИ I’de like to listen to (like Гранит науки) but some of them offer only transcripts, others offer only recordings. 
One correction. You need to right click on слушать and “save link as” to download audio file.
I’ve often heard you talking about Echo Moscvy. I wish there was something similar in Polish, it’s right up my alley. It’s more or less exactly what I would ask for to learn a language, at least when I’m finally ready to start Russian there’ll be something like that waiting for me.
One more thing to be said in Echo Moskvy’s favour is that I can get it streamed over the internet at 128Kb/s. It is nice and clear, which is more than can be said for all the radio stations that broadcast at 32 Kb/s or lower
I can understand parts of what is said, as long as they don’t get excited and start speaking too quickly. None of it has been about Quiddich yet, as far as I can tell.
Oh, and some of it appears to be product advertising! This sounds very strange to me. We still don’t have commercials on British radio
@ Aineko,
Thanks for your response. I fully agree with you, and also I understand it when people feel fed up with politics. In Serbia, or in the former Yugoslavia, people may be even more tired of it. I think I see the Russian specifics. Btw, here in Canada, the immigrants from the former zone of the Soviet influence (I forgot how it is in English, in Russian it is the “Countries of the People’s Democracy”) often find to share, even to their own surprise, a lot in common. Immigrants in general, to my perception, are originally “пофигистс” . But many native Canadians here are also pofigists, though of a different fraction.
@ Helen. Yesterday night on my way to bed I have caught 5min of Echo Moskvy on TV. I immediately have imagined it to be just that very scene that you and Mike had seen. It was between Shevchenko and Butman, hotly arguing about which weapon the Polish oficers had been shot from at Katun’, and by whom. They indeed were shouting, a heard mostly: “Walter, Walter” ( the make of the pistols), and the female journalist were pretended to try to calm them down. From such Walters it is indeed difficult to learn Russian. But there are many different, quite but engaging dialogs there, which are intelligent and intelligible.
@ blondside. I am sure you’d like it, if only Putin won’t shut them up by then.
@ blindsite. The mistake in your name is unintentional
Sorry, Blindside!
In Russian there is a cliche joke on such mistakes: “замеченные очепятки”.
The meaning would be: “Ertara”, but it sounds more funny. Do you know the analog in English or Polish?