Report: Critical state of freedom of speech
12.02.2025
The Mass Media Defense Centre, the leading human rights organization defending the rights of media and journalists in Russia, has published its annual report on the freedom of speech for 2024.
According to the report, the year 2024 was marked for Russian media and journalists by a continued tightening of legislation, increased criminal cases and fines, and expanded registries of foreign agents and undesirable organizations.
On the one hand, these trends are not new to Russia. On the other hand, new developments have emerged, including the mass initiation of criminal cases for non-compliance with foreign agent legislation, the prosecution of journalists under ‘extremist’ articles, and actions against correspondents of ‘undesirable’ media outlets and experts cooperating with them.
In the "Freedom of Speech – 2024" report, the Mass Media Defense Centre analyzed the laws that came into force or were adopted in 2024, while also compiling statistics on the persecution of journalists and media. The report includes data on the number of blocked media outlets, those whose registration was revoked, and other threats to freedom of speech recorded in Russia over the past 12 months.
REM shares the key findings of the report.
1. Inclusion of journalists and media in various discriminatory lists
Primarily, this refers to the registry of so-called ‘foreign agents’ and the list of ‘undesirable organizations’. In 2024, one media outlet was designated as a terrorist organization.
As of the end of 2024, Russia had 688 active ‘foreign agents’, including individuals, organizations, and unregistered public associations. This number includes 160 journalists, 63 media outlets, and 43 bloggers. In 2024 alone, 26 journalists, 20 media outlets, and 11 bloggers were newly designated as foreign agents. At the same time, the Ministry of Justice removed five journalists and one media outlet (Taiga.info, which ceased operations) from the registry.
By the end of 2024, the list of organizations declared ‘undesirable’ in Russia included 195 entities, with 65 new additions in the last year.
In 2024, the following media outlets were designated as ‘undesirable organizations’: Doxa, Radio Liberty, Sotaproject, International Russian Radio and Television, Dekoder, The Moscow Times, and Belsat TV. In total, the list includes 15 media outlets.
2. More pressure on 'foreign agents', including journalists and media
The number of administrative cases under the article “Violation of Foreign Agent Activity Procedures” increased in 2024. The total number of fines issued under this article saw a significant rise compared to the previous year, with first-instance courts issuing at least 556 penalties (up from 368 in 2023). Of these, 40% were imposed on journalists and bloggers. A mass wave of criminal cases was initiated based on this law.
In 2024, 58 journalists and bloggers were fined multiple times for “failure to fulfill foreign agent obligations”, putting them at risk of criminal prosecution. At least 16 criminal cases were opened last year; before 2024, only one such case had been initiated.
New restrictions were also introduced, including a ban on advertising on platforms owned by foreign agents, which particularly affected media outlets and bloggers who report on socio-political topics and rely on advertising as a primary source of income. On 11 March 2024, a law came into effect that prohibited advertising on foreign agents' platforms and the promotion of these platforms on third-party sites.
3. Increase in criminal cases against journalists
In 2024, at least 45 journalists were subjected to new criminal cases, some facing multiple charges. This represents nearly double the number from 2023 (23 cases). The most common charges included:
- Failure to fulfill foreign agent obligations – 16 cases
- Spreading “fake news” about the Russian army – 10 cases
- Participation in an extremist organization – 8 cases
- Public calls for terrorist activities – 7 cases
Besides, in 2024, at least 12 criminal cases were initiated against foreign journalists covering events in the Kursk region. Investigations are being conducted under Article 322 of the Russian Criminal Code (illegal crossing of the Russian Federation’s state border).
4. Growing number of administrative cases for cooperation with 'undesirable' media
One of the trends in 2024 was the prosecution of journalists and experts collaborating with 'undesirable' media outlets. The Mass Media Defense Centre recorded at least 79 court decisions under the article “Participation in the Activities of an Undesirable Organization”, based on employment in such media, participation as an expert, or reposting publications.
Among these cases:
- 20 fines issued to experts who gave comments to 'undesirable' media
- 20 journalists fined for working with 'undesirable' media
- 39 cases involved prosecution for sharing and reposting materials from 'undesirable' media.
The primary target of the regulatory bodies was the news agency Meduza. Courts issued at least 30 fines for working with, providing expertise for, or linking to this outlet. Journalists, experts, and readers of The Insider, Radio Liberty, Dozhd, Important Stories, Novaya Gazeta Europe, and Doxa were also penalized.
Furthermore, in 2024, the first criminal case under the article on organizing the activities of an 'undesirable' organization was initiated against a media executive. The defendant was Kirill Martynov, editor-in-chief of Novaya Gazeta Europe.
5. Deterioration of access to independent information
The decline in access to independent information was reflected in the blocking of media websites, the critical slowdown of YouTube, and the persecution of individuals spreading information about methods to circumvent the blocks (e.g., VPNs).
- In 2024, Roskomnadzor blocked at least 132 media projects, including 38 independent Russian outlets. Additionally, 53 Ukrainian-language media were restricted. Other blocked projects published content in English (including REM), French, Italian, Spanish, Mongolian, Georgian, Finnish, Slovak, Belarusian, and Romanian.
These statistics do not account for the websites of 81 European media outlets whose broadcasting was banned by the Russian Foreign Ministry in the summer of 2024. These outlets include Der Spiegel; Die Zeit; El Mundo; El Pais; La Stampa; La Repubblica; Helsingin Sanomat; Le Monde; Liberation; Agence France-Presse; Delfi; Politico; EUobserve.
On 1 March 2024, a law restricting access to information on circumventing blocks came into effect, prohibiting instructions on VPN installation and use, descriptions of their functionalities, and the sharing of links to such services.
- In early August, outages were reported on YouTube in Russia. Later that month, Roskomnadzor demanded that telecom operators refrain from interfering with YouTube's slowdown, as some operators began using technologies to bypass the service's slowdown. In December, Roskomnadzor announced it saw "grounds for action" against YouTube, and experts recorded the third phase of service slowdowns on December 15, (the first two were from July 26 to August 27 and from November 4 to 17).
In early August, outages were reported on YouTube in Russia. Later that month, Roskomnadzor demanded that telecom operators refrain from interfering with YouTube's slowdown, although some operators began using technologies to bypass the service’s restrictions. In December, Roskomnadzor announced it saw ‘grounds for action’ against YouTube, and experts recorded the third phase of service slowdowns on 15 December (the first two occurred on 26 July - 27 August and on 4-17 November).
6. Stricter control over information on social media
In 2024, a law requiring the mandatory registration of social media pages with over 10,000 subscribers came into force. Owners of such platforms must disclose information about themselves and all administrators to authorities. Non-compliance results in advertising bans, restrictions on donation collection, and potential blocking. In addition, users are prohibited from reposting content from non-compliant pages.
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In the 2024 World Press Freedom Index compiled by Reporters Without Borders, Russia ranks 162 out of 180 countries, positioned between Djibouti and Nicaragua.
