Russian investigative newspaper Novaya Gazeta ceased operations and left its Moscow newsroom on November 9, 2026, saying sustained state pressure had made it impossible to keep reporting. The newspaper had announced the closure on October 30, according to the Associated Press. Source Source
On the final day, journalists removed portraits of their slain colleagues from the newsroom. Outside, a sign placed over the office nameplate read, “Here lived Novaya Gazeta,” AP reported. Source
“It is an incredibly difficult decision, because this is more than a workplace, more than an office — this is our home, and we're losing it,” investigations editor Tatiana Britskaya said, according to AP. Source
Pressure on publishing—and the money behind it
Reuters reported that the newspaper had been designated a “foreign agent” and ordered to vacate its offices. Banks had also stopped processing the reader donations it relied on to survive. Source
AP reported that authorities had blocked the newspaper's online platforms, seized its printing house and revoked its media registration. Source
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov offered the language of market competition instead. He described the closure as part of a “rotational process” in a fiercely competitive media environment, Reuters reported. Source
An investigative legacy, an uncertain future
Launched in 1993, Novaya Gazeta built its reputation on investigations into corruption and human rights abuses. Six of its journalists have been killed, including Anna Politkovskaya, who covered atrocities during the second Chechen War and was fatally shot in her apartment building in 2006, AP reported. Source
The paper had already halted its print edition after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the introduction of tight censorship laws in 2022. It continued publishing online, becoming a refuge for independent journalists who remained in Russia, according to Reuters. Source
Co-founder Dmitry Muratov, a co-winner of the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize, addressed journalists at the closure. “We are currently at a point where the section of the Russian constitution that guarantees political and civil rights has effectively ceased to function,” he said, according to Reuters. Source
Some staff who left Russia in 2022 established a separate outlet, Novaya Gazeta Europe, AP reported. Source
Editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov said he believed Novaya Gazeta would return “with renewed strength,” according to AP. Reuters reported that it remained unclear whether the newspaper would attempt to regroup and publish in another form. Source Source
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