DISINFO: Journalism is free in Russia
SUMMARY
Political correctness has become a form of censorship in the West. There are issues that people in the Western countries cannot talk about, while the Russians can, and this is the strength of Russian free journalism.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin narrative on western media not being independent and biased while Russia protects freedom of speech and the press. According to the 2019 World Press Freedom Index, Russia is in 149th place out of 180 countries. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), 83 journalists and media representatives have been killed in Russia since 1993. Out of them, 38 have been murdered directly for being engaged in investigative journalism related to corruption, politics, and human rights violations. According to the report, the murders can be traced to the Government. As of 2017, five journalists were being detained in Russia, on charges related to their professional activities. According to RWB, pressure on the independent media, blocking websites, and draconian laws became even more severe in the last years. Leading independent news outlets either ended up in the governmental control or were shut down under suspicious circumstances. See similar disinformation cases here and here.