Carry out this deception by using mass media and agents of influence to persuade that Russian Communism has softened and changed its path and its goals. Boost the feeble Communist command economies and rebuild industrial base and military forces with fresh infusions of Western capital and technology. Purge the Russian and Soviet Communist Parties. Consolidate power in the hands of the Communist ruling elites. The Formation of Soviet Man , by Mikhail Geller.
Authorities differ on the number of distinct glasnost periods.
Others count as many as nine glasnosts.