Russia's last major independent paper closes after 30 years

Russia’s oldest independent newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, has ceased operations after more than 30 years of publication. The closure marks the end of the final major independent news outlet remaining within Russia’s borders during the war in Ukraine.

Editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov announced the shutdown in a video released last month. He stated that the Russian state had killed the newspaper by stripping it of essential resources. Sokolov said the publication could no longer raise money, rent office space, or report on events without the risk of prison time for its staff.

The paper was founded in the early 1990s and became known for criticizing government authorities. Its journalists faced physical danger throughout its history. Six reporters were killed while working for the newspaper, including Anna Politkovskaya, who died in 2006 after investigating the war in Chechnya.

On Monday, staff members packed up the office for the last time. They removed portraits of the slain journalists from a memorial wall and placed them into a storage box. The box was labeled with the words, ours, keep with care.

Dmitry Muratov, the paper’s co-founder and 2021 Nobel Peace Prize laureate, addressed journalists outside the office on Monday. He described current repressions in Russia as sweeping in nature. Muratov said Russian security services effectively now run the country.

Tatiana Britskaya, a journalist at the paper, explained that operating within limits was a necessary trade-off. She noted that the war involves more than just the battlefield. It includes refugees, political prisoners, and citizens who opposed the invasion but remained in Russia.

The newspaper faced years of state pressure. Muratov was attacked and nearly blinded. Police raided the office multiple times, and all employees were designated as foreign agents. This label recalls Soviet-era designations for enemies of the state.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected claims that the government caused the closure. He described the shutdown as a rational business decision amid competition. Columnist Andrei Kolesnikov disagreed, calling it a slow strangulation of civil society. He said there is no job for people like them in a totalitarian regime.

Before leaving, Muratov held up photos of Russian political prisoners. He called for the evacuation of civilians and an end to bombings in Ukrainian cities. He reminded the crowd that millions of Russians never wanted to attack their neighbor.

The staff displayed a modified version of the newspaper's old nameplate. It now reads, Novaya Gazeta lived here.