JournalismPakistan.com | Published last year
Join our WhatsApp channel
NEW YORK—As the trial of U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich began behind closed doors in a Russian court on Wednesday, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the proceedings as a severe miscarriage of justice and reiterated its demand for his immediate release.
"U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich goes on trial today after nearly 15 months of wrongful detention. Given the baseless and unsupported charges against him, this trial is a sham," stated Gulnoza Said, CPJ's Europe and Central Asia program coordinator. "Russian authorities must end this injustice, release Gershkovich, dismiss all charges, and cease prosecuting journalists for their reporting."
The trial, which commenced on June 26 at the Sverdlovsk Regional Court in Yekaterinburg, remains of indeterminate length, according to reports.
Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) charged Gershkovich, a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, with espionage on March 29, 2023, alleging he collected "secret information" for the CIA about a Russian tank factory in the Sverdlovsk region.
Facing up to 20 years in prison, Gershkovich is the first American journalist to be accused of espionage by Russia since the Cold War. Both the journalist, his employer, and the U.S. government have vehemently denied these allegations.
"No evidence has been presented. The outcome is already known: This false accusation of espionage will lead to a wrongful conviction of an innocent journalist who could face up to 20 years in prison for simply doing his job," said Emma Tucker, editor-in-chief of The Wall Street Journal, in a statement on Tuesday.
On June 13, the Russian prosecutor general's office announced that Gershkovich's indictment was finalized.
"We were hopeful to broker a deal with the Russians before this, but it doesn't stop or slow us down," stated Roger Carstens, the special presidential envoy for hostage affairs at the U.S. Department of State, to the House Foreign Affairs Committee on the same day.
On April 11, 2023, the U.S. State Department designated Gershkovich as "wrongfully detained," prompting a comprehensive government effort to secure his release.
Russia is the world's fourth-worst jailer of journalists, with at least 22 currently imprisoned, including Gershkovich and Alsu Kurmasheva, a U.S.-Russian journalist, as per CPJ's latest prison census on December 1, 2023.—A CPJ Statement/Photo: AP
October 30, 2025: CDEPS and CPJ condemn the arrest of 7TV’s Maimouna Ndour Faye and other journalists in a late October crackdown on Senegalese media over interviews with a wanted politician.
October 29, 2025: CPJ calls on Turkey to release journalist Merdan Yanardag and return control of TELE1, after his arrest on espionage charges and state media takeover.
October 26, 2025: CNN’s Christiane Amanpour reveals her ovarian cancer has returned but says it’s being well-managed, urging greater awareness and early diagnosis.
October 23, 2025: Two Ukrainian journalists were killed in a Russian drone strike in Kramatorsk. FREEDOM TV’s Alyona Gramova and Yevgeny Karmazin died while reporting.
October 23, 2025: CPJ calls on Turkish authorities to protect journalists Rabia Önver, Şule Aydın, and Murat Ağırel after death threats and reports of planned attacks.
October 21, 2025: Warner Bros. Discovery is exploring a sale after receiving multiple bids, raising questions about the futures of CNN, HBO, and its streaming assets.
October 21, 2025: CPJ calls on Italian authorities to swiftly bring to justice those behind the car bomb attack on journalist Sigfrido Ranucci, host of RAI3’s 'Report.'
October 16, 2025: Dozens of Pentagon journalists resign press access over Trump administration restrictions, raising concerns about press freedom and independent military reporting.
October 30, 2025 Vietnamese authorities seize BBC journalist’s passport amid interrogation, sparking outrage as Hanoi leader To Lam visits the UK. Rights groups urge her release.
October 29, 2025 In a historic first, a Bishkek court declares Kloop, Temirov Live, and their founders extremist, marking Kyrgyzstan’s sharpest assault on press freedom under President Japarov.
October 29, 2025 Babar Azam's form slump reveals a psychological battle between classical artistry and modern cricket demands. Inside the mind of Pakistan's maestro, struggling to rediscover flow.
October 29, 2025 The New York Times is accepting applications for its 2025 fellowship, a one-year journalism training program for emerging reporters, editors, and visual journalists. Deadline: November 19, 2025.
October 29, 2025 Alfred Friendly Press Partners invites exiled journalists in the US to apply for its 2026 four-week fellowship offering training, support, and a $2,000 stipend.