200 Russian journalists and activists demand Gershkovich release

Some 200 Russian journalists and activists have signed an open letter demanding the immediate release of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, reports Andrew Jeong of The Washington Post.

Jeong reports, “The letter’s authors called the charges against Gershkovich ‘preposterous and unjust’ and said the FSB was simply expecting the world to take it at its word. The Kremlin has a history of unjustly detaining U.S. citizens, Western officials have said.

“Many of the signatories were independent journalists working for Russian news organizations based outside their homeland. The letter was published in outlets such as Mediazona, whose reporters are scattered outside Russia, and TV Rain, which broadcasts from the Netherlands. Their locations symbolize the collapse of press freedom since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine last year.

“The letter’s authors also compared Gershkovich to Ivan Safronov, a Russian journalist sentenced in September to 22 years on treason charges. Evidence was not made public, as Safronov’s trial was held behind closed doors, The Washington Post has reported.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.