Russia's super-rich will soon have a magazine called "Snob" to help them flaunt their wealth, media reported Thursday.
The 42-year-old Mikhail Prokhorov -- whose wealth is estimated at around 22 billion U.S. dollars -- plans to spend 150 million dollars setting up a magazine, website and television station called "Snob."
"It's for people who are successful and those who want to be successful," said Andrei Shmarov, who will run Snob.
Ranked as the 24th richest person in the world on the Forbes Rich List, Prokhorov is one of the owners of Norilsk Nickel, the world's biggest nickel producer, and Polyus Gold, Russia's biggest gold producer.
Shmarov said Russians attach a different meaning to the word "Snob" as defined by Oxford English Dictionary.
"Snob to us means a person who is a 'self-made man', a person who has gained a right to snobbishness," said Shmarov, emphasizing the main difference with the British meaning which he said referred to inherited wealth.
"It's not pleasant to boast about your wealth when you have inherited it but when you have made it yourself, well it is still not very nice, but it is justified," Shmarov said.
Shmarov said Snob's magazine and website, which will focus on lifestyle features, business news and travel, will be available from this summer, with the cable television channel following shortly.
(Xinhua News Agency/Agencies April 24, 2008)
