Russian online medium added to the “Foreign Agents” list
A real bang followed a few days ago when “Meduza”, Russia’s largest online medium, whose editorial office is in Riga, Latvia, was added to the register of “foreign agents” by the Ministry of Justice. The journalists now have to put a corresponding note in front of every “Meduza” publication in large letters. The result was not long in coming. Just a few days later, the editorial team had to publish an appeal for donations because most of the Russian advertising customers had turned away from the portal. They feared they would be targeted by the Justice Department for their part. “We have become toxic for many advertisers,” the editorial team said in a statement. “We had a stable business. That no longer exists.”
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Other media, such as the “PASMI” portal, which specializes in reports on corruption by state officials, ended up in the notorious register at the same time. The authorities hardly ever give specific reasons for this step. According to the law, a transfer from abroad to Russian organizations or private individuals is enough to brand them as “foreign agents”.
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Police raided TV channels
But those in power have also tightened the laws for media houses. The media are no longer allowed to report on protest demonstrations if they do not have official approval. Otherwise, they can be held accountable as co-organizers. Just a few weeks ago, for example, a studio of the independent TV station “Doschd” was stormed by the police because the journalists had filmed an unauthorized demonstration in Moscow city center.
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Codes for Russia’s journalists
The rules for journalists who want to report on protest rallies have also been gradually tightened. Journalists now have to adhere to strict guidelines if they want to avoid arrest during demonstrations. It is no longer enough to be able to show a press card. If you want to report on a demonstration, you need an editorial office. In addition, representatives of the press must identify themselves by means of signal vests and visibly worn press signs. And the rules are likely to become even stricter soon. For example, the city government of Saint Petersburg is planning to introduce special codes for journalists, which can be issued as a kind of accreditation in advance of the event. Critics see this as an attempt to exclude journalists critical of the government from reporting.
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The work of the Russian press is becoming more and more difficult
But even journalists who stick to all the rules always run a risk in their work. After the recent demonstrations in mid-April, six Moscow journalists received a visit from the police. Supposedly, surveillance cameras captured their faces at the rallies. The journalists were asked to submit orders from editorial offices. The actions of the police in the case of the journalist Sergei Stepanov, who works for the Finnish broadcaster “IRR-TV”, were particularly absurd. A few days after the demonstration, Stepanov was sentenced to 30 days of house arrest, although he had obeyed the rules during the demonstration and had a written editorial assignment. In court, however, the authorities presented images from a surveillance camera on which Stepanov’s press sign could not be seen for a moment.
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Journalists and editors are now becoming more and more certain that the flood of new rules will hinder the work of the press in Russia even more in the future.
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