The Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta announced it would cease operations following a campaign of state pressure, including prosecutions of its senior editor and the withdrawal of financial support and premises, reports BritPanorama.
In its statement, Novaya Gazeta described its situation starkly: “We have been killed.” Established with funds from the Nobel Peace Prize by Mikhail Gorbachev, the publication halted its print edition in 2022 but continued to operate online from its Moscow office.
“On November 9, we will turn off the lights in the home where we have lived for 30 years, shut down our servers, and leave,” the statement continued. “The newspaper no longer exists. The Russian authorities and the Russian security services have forced our editorial team to cease its operations.”
Novaya Gazeta a thorn in Russian authorities’ side
Authorities have yet to publicly comment on the closure, though Novaya Gazeta faced severe restrictions and had been labeled a “foreign agent.” The Kremlin has argued that some censorship is warranted as Russia engages in what it describes as an existential struggle with the West over Ukraine.
Responses from pro-government figures have condemned the newspaper; a notable war blogger criticized it for promoting an anti-Russian narrative and for purportedly delighting in the state’s challenges.
Founded in 1993 under Gorbachev’s vision of glasnost, Novaya Gazeta had established itself as a significant voice for democracy in Russia through its investigative work and critical reporting on political matters.
Dmitry Muratov, the paper’s co-founder and long-time editor-in-chief, was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021 and dedicated it to colleagues killed for their journalistic work, including Anna Politkovskaya, who reported on conflicts in Chechnya.
Pressure from fallout of Ukraine war
The newspaper’s troubles intensified following Russia’s full-scale war in Ukraine in 2022, which triggered stringent censorship laws penalizing those who “discredit” the military or disseminate “fake news.”
Novaya Gazeta asserted, “Since the start of the ‘special military operation’ in Ukraine and the introduction of criminal charges for ‘discrediting the Russian army,’ we cannot report on the most critical and tragic events of our time. Censorship applies to virtually every sphere of civic life.”
Amid increasing repression, many journalists chose to flee Russia in 2022. A group of former staff initiated a Latvian-based publication called Novaya Gazeta Europe, which has been classified as an “undesirable organization” by Moscow, effectively prohibiting its operation within Russia.
Inside Russia, Novaya Gazeta’s website was blocked, and its publishing license was revoked. Editor Oleg Roldugin has been placed under house arrest pending trial for alleged misuse of personal data, a charge that carries a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
The authorities have searched its Moscow offices, while the home of editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov was also raided recently.
“We carried on as long as we could,” Novaya Gazeta concluded in its farewell announcement.
