Russia: Independent Novaya Gazeta shuts its Moscow newsroom

Novaya Gazeta closed its Moscow newsroom, saying state pressure had made it impossible to continue reporting there. The closure highlights the shrinking space for independent journalism in Russia, where censorship and restrictions have intensified since the invasion of Ukraine.

Authorities labelled the paper a “foreign agent”, ordered it to leave its premises and barred banks from processing donations, a key source of income after it moved online. Founded in 1993 with seed money from Mikhail Gorbachev’s Nobel Peace Prize fund, the newspaper had six journalists murdered over the years. Its leaders have not said whether reporting will end entirely or resume from outside Russia.