Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta to close under state pressure
publishers 26articles 29first reported 29 Oct, 13:48 UTCdeveloping since 30 Oct · 3 editions
Russian independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta said Friday it will cease operations after years of mounting pressure from state authorities, with its final issue scheduled for November 9.
“We have been killed,” the newspaper’s editorial team said. Editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov said Russian authorities and security services had forced the newsroom to end its work. The outlet said it would shut down its servers and leave its Moscow headquarters after losing access to its premises and a platform used to collect reader donations.
Novaya Gazeta stopped publishing its print edition inside Russia in 2022 but continued producing online journalism. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine that year, its media licence has been revoked, it has been designated a “foreign agent,” and several journalists and editors have been questioned, detained or subjected to searches. Sokolov was questioned this month in connection with a criminal case against colleague Oleg Roldugin, who has pleaded not guilty to unlawfully accessing computer information.
Founded in 1993 with financial help from former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, Novaya Gazeta became known for investigations into corruption, human rights abuses and Russian politics. Co-founder and former editor-in-chief Dmitry Muratov shared the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize and dedicated it to six colleagues killed because of their work, including journalist Anna Politkovskaya.
Russian authorities did not immediately comment on the closure. The Kremlin has previously defended wartime censorship as necessary amid its confrontation with the West over Ukraine.
HOW THIS STORY WAS MADE
Written from 8 articles, 6 with the publisher's own text; 8 independent newsrooms once syndicated copies count as one; this version written 18 h after the record first saw the story; the editor kept it as written.
- Publishers
- 26
- Source articles
- 29
- Given to the writer
- 8, 6 with the article's own text
- Independent newsrooms
- 8
- This version written
- 18 h after the record first saw the story
- Second model (editor)
- kept as written
- Publication gate
- passed
- Human review
- none
WHAT THE EDITOR DID
The second model checked the writer's draft against the same sources and published it as written.
Written by a language model from the sources above, then checked by a second model that may only cut, attribute or correct. How it works →