The subject of the study is the examination of the composition of the staff of the newspaper "Moscow Vedomosti" and the literary-political magazine "Russian Herald" during the period from 1856 to 1887. The article is dedicated to the study of the views of publicists who collaborated with Katkov's publications, which is due to the insufficient study of the peculiarities of M. N. Katkov's interaction with the authors who constantly worked with the editorial office and shared the publisher's main views on the internal and external policy of the Russian Empire. The aim of the work is to classify like-minded publicists according to the degree of similarity of their views with those of M. N. Katkov and their hierarchical distribution depending on their closeness to the chief editor. The main criteria for this distribution are: the level of personal interaction with the chief editor, the commonality of their views and interests, as well as involvement in the publishing process. The methodological foundation of this work consists of historical-genetic, historical-comparative, and historical-typological methods, which allow for a detailed reconstruction of Katkov's circle. This work is one of the first in this area. The result of the study was the classification of Katkov’s authors, which allowed for the conclusion that there is a close interconnection between Katkov's successful journalistic activity and the support from his closest circle, formed according to ideological and functional components. Studying this community makes it possible to trace the formation and development of the publisher's ideas and those of his like-minded individuals, their interconnection with the current historical situation, and M. N. Katkov's methods and approaches to reaching a wide readership, both domestic and foreign, and consequently to further cementing authority in Russia and Europe. Thanks to a well-chosen entourage, Katkov was able to influence the policies of the Russian Empire and maintain the impact of his publications for nearly thirty years.
Mariya Vladimirovna Bezverhnyaya (Sun,) studied this question.