Russian opposition newspaper Nowaja Gaseta shuts down

The prominent Russian opposition newspaper Nowaja Gaseta announced its definitive closure on Friday, declaring on its website, "Man hat uns getötet" (They have killed us). Editor-in-chief Sergej Sokolow stated in a video address that the publication will turn off the lights in its building and shut down its servers on 9 November, adding that the newspaper no longer exists. The decision follows more than 30 years of critical journalism and an escalating campaign of state pressure.

State repression and the foreign agent label

According to Tagesschau, Sokolow stated that Russian authorities and secret services forced the editorial team to stop working. The newspaper had faced relentless pressure, including a one-month eviction notice issued by its landlord for its office in central Moscow and the simultaneous blocking of its reader donation system. In September, the entire editorial staff—including more than 100 journalists and authors—was designated as "foreign agents," following the earlier blacklisting of founder and Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitri Muratow, as reported by taz and Tagesschau.

This designation carries severe economic and professional penalties. According to taz, those listed as foreign agents face the loss of rental income, sparkonto interest, royalties, and other income from intellectual activities. The newspaper stated that its staff faced the end of their livelihoods on the street, coupled with the constant threat of repression.

Break-ins and legal persecution

The closure was also driven by acute security breaches and legal threats against staff. According to taz, an unknown intruder broke into the newspaper's central Moscow office in the night of 26 October. Former editor-in-chief Dmitrij Muratow and Sokolow briefed the staff in the basement without using phones, driven by fears that their conversations were being monitored and that the newspaper could be classified as extremist, which would result in criminal consequences for employees remaining in Russia. Press spokeswoman Nadeschda Prusenkowa summarized the situation, stating that the authorities had driven them into a corner with no room left to manoeuvre.

Individual journalists have also faced direct criminal prosecution. Tagesschau reports that investigative journalist Oleg Roldugin is facing up to six years in prison on accusations of illegally collecting and distributing personal data, a case Sokolow described as holding him as a hostage.

A legacy of targeted violence

Nowaja Gaseta has long operated under extreme danger, surviving the loss of its printing press, blocked bank accounts, house searches, and the targeted assassination of several reporters. Tagesschau notes that the publication lost colleagues Igor Domnikow, Juri Schekochichin, Anna Politkowskaja, Stas Markelow, Nastja Baburowa, and Natascha Estemirowa to political violence. Despite the authorities intensifying their crackdown following the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the paper continued to publish via Telegram and YouTube until this final closure.

This piece was generated automatically by an AI model from the sources listed below. It has not been reviewed by a human editor.

Sources

• Aus für russische „Nowaja Gaseta“: Schweigen ist keine Option — taz
• Aus für die Nowaja Gaseta in Russland: "Die Zeitung gibt es nicht mehr" — Tagesschau
• Aus für kremlkritische „Nowaja Gaseta“: „Man hat uns getötet“ — taz