This paper studies various types of verbal prohibition and new legislative initiatives in Russia aimed at regulating speech in the public sphere (in particular, the April 2014 law regulating the use of ‚mat‘, that is, obscene expressions in the mass media, theater, literature, and film). These initiatives are examined both in their contemporary context and in historical perspective. Since most of the new laws are vague, the paper argues, they will be subject to arbitrary interpretations and misinterpretations.