Politics1 min read

Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta to close

By · Via The Guardian · Published by Everything Blog

In short

The outlet had already lost its Russian media license and curtailed domestic production in 2022 after being branded a "foreign agent" by Moscow. Recent escalation directly triggered the decision to halt operations entirely, including a police search of editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov's home. Authorities questioned Sokolov in connection with a criminal case against colleague Oleg Roldugin, who was arrested in April for alleged unlawful access to computerised information.

Key points

  • Russian authorities have successfully eliminated one of the nation's final prominent dome…: Russian authorities have successfully eliminated one of the nation's final prominent domestic independent news institutions through persistent legal pressure.
  • Escalating censorship and criminal cases against reporters have rendered domestic news op…: Escalating censorship and criminal cases against reporters have rendered domestic news operations unsustainable following the 2022 offensive in Ukraine.
  • Previous international accolades, including a Nobel Peace Prize, failed to shield the leg…: Previous international accolades, including a Nobel Peace Prize, failed to shield the legacy publication from complete state suppression.

Sources checked by our analysis pipeline: 1

The Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta has announced it is closing, citing pressure from authorities who recently searched the home of its senior editor and earlier this year detained one of its journalists.

“Novaya Gazeta is ceasing to exist,” the editor-in-chief, Sergei Sokolov, said in a video statement published on YouTube on Friday. “The Russian authorities – the Russian special services – have forced the editorial team to end its work.”

Russia has introduced near-Soviet levels of censorship since sending troops to Ukraine, pushing the vast majority of independent journalists into exile. Novaya Gazeta, a bastion of independent journalism in Russia, is classed by Moscow as a “foreign agent”, a label used to stifle dissent.

Sokolov said: “Novaya Gazeta has been killed … On November 9 we will turn off the lights in our home, where we have lived for 30 years. We will shut down the servers and leave.”

This month Sokolov was taken in for questioning and Russian authorities searched his home over a criminal case involving one of his colleagues, Oleg Roldugin, who was arrested in April.

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