Free press in exile
I combined my areas of expertise -- journalism and Russian -- to report from Riga, Latvia, in both Russian and English. I wrote a profile on Galina Timchenko, CEO and founder of the independent Russian media outlet based in Riga, called Meduza. Check out my article, which placed fifth in personality writing in the 58th annual William Randolph Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program, here:
https://www.thelionsroaratpsu.org/home/free-press-in-exile/.
A bit of background:
In what is described as a Kremlin "media purge" in the heat of the crisis in Ukraine, Timchenko was fired as editor in chief nearly four years ago from Lenta, an online news outlet so widely read that it was referred to as the "Russian New York Times." She, along with members of her staff at Lenta who left in protest of her firing, moved to Riga to start an outlet under European Union protection to avoid censorship. Meduza now has more than 10 million unique visitors a month and recently announced a partnership with BuzzFeed. I have also translated this piece into Russian for my Undergraduate Honors Thesis, which can be viewed here:
https://honors.libraries.psu.edu/files/final_submissions/5028
https://www.thelionsroaratpsu.org/home/free-press-in-exile/.
A bit of background:
In what is described as a Kremlin "media purge" in the heat of the crisis in Ukraine, Timchenko was fired as editor in chief nearly four years ago from Lenta, an online news outlet so widely read that it was referred to as the "Russian New York Times." She, along with members of her staff at Lenta who left in protest of her firing, moved to Riga to start an outlet under European Union protection to avoid censorship. Meduza now has more than 10 million unique visitors a month and recently announced a partnership with BuzzFeed. I have also translated this piece into Russian for my Undergraduate Honors Thesis, which can be viewed here:
https://honors.libraries.psu.edu/files/final_submissions/5028