Non-state media blocked in Russia as Putin cracks down on dissent

Reporters walk out of the studio after TV Rain announced Thursday it was suspending operations following a threat of closure from the authorities.

Russia has reportedly blocked all foreign media from reporting in the country after its media censor accused organisations, including the BBC and the Voice of America, of "spreading fakes about Ukraine" following Moscow's invasion.

Russia's media censor said it had blocked the websites of the BBC, Voice of America, Radio Free Europe, Deutsche Welle, and Meduza.

Independent Russian TV Rain was also barred by the Putin government after they referred to the Kremlin's invasion of Ukraine as a "war" while Russia’s top independent radio station, Ekho Moskvy (the Echo of Moscow), was also closed.

TV Rain said it is “temporarily suspending” operations and many of its reporters have fled Russia.Staff were seen walking out during a YouTube stream, signing off with the words "no war".

They played out with a clip of Russian composer Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake, which has historically been played on Soviet Union state channels during political upheaval, for example when heads of state died.

Police face demonstrators during a protest against Russia's attack on Ukraine in St. Petersburg. Credit: AP

Ekho Moskvy has been one of the most influential and respected media outlets in the country since it was founded in 1990. The station was taken off the air on Wednesday over the failure to toe the Kremlin’s official line while covering the invasion of Ukraine.

On Thursday, the station’s board of directors — which is controlled by its majority owner, a media arm of Russia’s state-controlled natural gas giant Gazprom — declared Ekho Moskvy closed. The station's journalists said they will keep working on social networks and YouTube.

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RT Russia editor-in-chief Maria Baronova has also reportedly resigned over the Ukraine invasion - although this has not been confirmed.

Previously, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova has accused the BBC of playing “a determined role in undermining the Russian stability and security”.

She also condemned the banning of Russian media RT and Sputnik globally, claiming the world was being deprived of Russia’s point of view and Western media was only giving one side.

Russian officials have demanded media in Russia cover the invasion of Ukraine in strict accordance with the official line and have quickly pounced on media that described Moscow's attack on Ukraine as an “invasion” or “a war” and carried statements from the Ukrainian side.

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