Today’s attacks on press freedom in Russia are sadly all-too predictable. In the wake of constitutional changes that mean president Putin could in theory rule until 2036, allegations of elite corruption and a broader crisis of legitimacy, the Russian regime is gradually destroying all possible sources of criticism ahead of parliamentary elections later this year.
Russia’s justice ministry has now declared Meduza, a leading independent media organisation, a “foreign agent” – a legal term used to define organisations that pursue “political activity” while receiving funding from abroad.
This decision means that every text published by Meduza, including on social media, must inform readers that it has been authored by a foreign agent with the following message:
