The different tactics that President Putin and the government have used to clamp down on journalists in Russia.
By Kaela Malig
Tow Journalism Fellow
FRONTLINE/Columbia Journalism School Fellowship
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, independent journalists and media have faced an intensifying crackdown, with many declared “foreign agents.” FRONTLINE’s documentary Putin vs. the Press explores how Novaya Gazeta, the independent newspaper founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Dmitry Muratov, was censored and eventually forced to shut down by the Russian government.
Although Russia’s war on Ukraine has led to an “unprecedented clampdown on the media,” Amnesty International’s Russia researcher Natalia Prilutskaya told FRONTLINE that press freedom was already in a dire position in Russia. Press freedom has seen a steady decline in the country ever since Vladimir Putin, who was first elected to the presidency in 2000, came into power. According to the Reporters Without Borders’ World Press Freedom Index — which is updated annually — Russia ranked 148th among 180 countries in 2014. By 2023, the country’s rank dropped to 164th.
“It’s never been easy to be a journalist in Russia,” Gulnoza Said, the Committee to Protect Journalists’ Europe and Central Asia program coordinator, told FRONTLINE. “Since 1991, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, it’s always been quite a difficult job to do.”
She added, “Since he came to power, he has tried to establish a tight lid over the free flow of information.”
Here, we take a closer look at the different tactics that President Putin and the government have used to clamp down on journalists in Russia, and the impact it’s had on press freedom since he came to power.