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Russia continues its relentless march to modernity: Lenta.ru editor fired, staff allegedly quits
Last edited Wed Mar 12, 2014, 12:13 PM - Edit history (1)
The chief editor of one of Russia's oldest and most popular news websites, Lenta.ru, was summarily dismissed Wednesday after a state watchdog warned the site over its interviews with Ukrainian ultra-nationalists.
The news portal is known for its detailed coverage of figures in opposition to President Vladimir Putin, including punk rock band Pussy Riot and protest leader Alexei Navalny.
Owner Alexander Mamut took the decision to fire editor-in-chief Galina Timchenko with immediate effect, the site said in a brief statement that did not give a reason for her dismissal.
...
Timchenko's sudden departure comes after a Russian government media watchdog earlier Wednesday issued an official warning to Lenta.ru for "distributing materials of extremist nature."
It cited an interview with a member of Ukraine's Pravy Sektor, or Right Sector, a far-right radical movement that fought police during protest clashes in Kiev last month, as well as an article quoting the movement's leader Dmytro Yarosh.
...
Russia's media landscape dramatically changed this year when the only state news agency to experiment with a more Western approach to news reporting, RIA Novosti, was abruptly wound up and relaunched under the same editorship as RT television.
The news portal is known for its detailed coverage of figures in opposition to President Vladimir Putin, including punk rock band Pussy Riot and protest leader Alexei Navalny.
Owner Alexander Mamut took the decision to fire editor-in-chief Galina Timchenko with immediate effect, the site said in a brief statement that did not give a reason for her dismissal.
...
Timchenko's sudden departure comes after a Russian government media watchdog earlier Wednesday issued an official warning to Lenta.ru for "distributing materials of extremist nature."
It cited an interview with a member of Ukraine's Pravy Sektor, or Right Sector, a far-right radical movement that fought police during protest clashes in Kiev last month, as well as an article quoting the movement's leader Dmytro Yarosh.
...
Russia's media landscape dramatically changed this year when the only state news agency to experiment with a more Western approach to news reporting, RIA Novosti, was abruptly wound up and relaunched under the same editorship as RT television.
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/russian-news-site-editor-fired-after-warning-over-ukraine-coverage.aspx?pageID=238&nID=63497&NewsCatID=353
So basically, all the independent media sources in Russia are being shut down one by one.
I saw a tweet that the staff of Lenta all resigned over this, but don't see any confirming news stories.
Edit at 12:12 to add below:
Statement from Lenta staff, translated by Google:
Dear readers !
Today , March 12 , the owner of "Bill - Rambler -SUP» Alexander Mamut sacked chief editor of " Heathcliff " Timchenko . New editor appointed Alexei Goreslavskii - Deputy Director General for External Communications .
Unfortunately , it is not native castling , so it requires some explanation. We believe that this appointment is a direct pressure on the editorial " Heathcliff ". Dismissal of an independent chief and appointment managed , including directly from the Kremlin offices , man - it is a violation of the law on the media talking about the inadmissibility of censorship.
Over the past couple of years the space of free journalism in Russia has decreased dramatically . Some publications are controlled directly from the Kremlin , others - through curators , and others - editors , who fear losing their jobs . Some media outlets were closed , others will close in the coming months . The problem is not that we have nowhere to run . The trouble is that you seem to have nothing more to read.
We certainly expected that they would come and for us.
We believe that this is not forever. In any case, you , dear readers, should know about it .
We hope to see you soon .
Today , March 12 , the owner of "Bill - Rambler -SUP» Alexander Mamut sacked chief editor of " Heathcliff " Timchenko . New editor appointed Alexei Goreslavskii - Deputy Director General for External Communications .
Unfortunately , it is not native castling , so it requires some explanation. We believe that this appointment is a direct pressure on the editorial " Heathcliff ". Dismissal of an independent chief and appointment managed , including directly from the Kremlin offices , man - it is a violation of the law on the media talking about the inadmissibility of censorship.
Over the past couple of years the space of free journalism in Russia has decreased dramatically . Some publications are controlled directly from the Kremlin , others - through curators , and others - editors , who fear losing their jobs . Some media outlets were closed , others will close in the coming months . The problem is not that we have nowhere to run . The trouble is that you seem to have nothing more to read.
We certainly expected that they would come and for us.
We believe that this is not forever. In any case, you , dear readers, should know about it .
We hope to see you soon .
Link: http://lenta.ru/info/posts/statement/
Any help with getting a better translation is appreciated.
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