Eurovision is meant to be a politics-free zone—“lyrics, speeches, gestures of a political or similar nature” are banned, according to the rules. But that doesn’t always happen.In 2014, when Anastasia and Maria Tolmachevy, the twin sisters representing Russia, got on stage to perform in Copenhagen, the audience booed. The competition aired just two months after Russia annexed Crimea, the Ukrainian peninsula, a move decried by nearly all the participating countries. Both Russia and Ukraine had qualified for the finals, and Eurovision suddenly became a reflection of geopolitical affairs.Two years later, the tensions were still on full display Saturday in Stockholm. …read more
Source: The Atlantic
