Russia: independent newspaper Novaya Gazeta shuts down after more than 30 years

One of Russia's best-known independent newspapers, Novaya Gazeta, is closing down. Editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov announced it on Friday 30 October 2026 in a statement published on YouTube.

What the newsroom announced

According to the statement, on 9 November the newsroom will switch off its servers and leave its premises. Sokolov said the Russian authorities and security services had forced the team to stop work. He added that after more than 30 years, journalists would be left on the street without a livelihood and under constant threat of repression.

In early September 2026, the authorities in Moscow designated the paper a "foreign agent". It is a legal tool used in Russia against media outlets, organisations and individuals.

The decision to close

Polish media, citing The Economist, report that the paper's management was told it would be evicted from its Moscow premises. Sources differ on the date: some say 19 October, others early October. In late October, Dmitry Muratov, the longtime editor-in-chief, and Sokolov met staff in the basement of a neighbouring building because they feared the office was bugged. According to accounts, the decision to close was taken there. It was meant to avoid the paper being declared an "extremist organisation" and its journalists being arrested.

Muratov wrote that the newsroom had not died a natural death but had been "killed" along with the constitution. He referred to its Article 29, which bans censorship.

Background

Novaya Gazeta was founded in the early 1990s and was known for its critical stance towards the authorities. In March 2022 it suspended work until the end of the war in Ukraine, and a few months later a Moscow court revoked its licence. In September 2023 Muratov was added to the list of "foreign agents". Journalists who left Russia run a separate site, Novaya Gazeta. Europe.

What this means for you

The news has no direct legal or financial consequences for people living in the UK. For those following news from Russia and Ukraine, however, it means fewer independent sources from inside the country. They can still turn to exile media, including the site set up by the paper's former journalists.