Foreign agent-labeled news website shuts down in Russia

 JournalismPakistan.com |  Published: 4 June 2021

VTimes has shut down operations following its designation as a foreign agent by Russian authorities. The label severely impacted its business and partnerships.

Summary

MOSCOW—Popular Russian news website VTimes has announced that it is closing its operations after being designated a “foreign agent” by the authorities, saying that crackdown on media had scared away its partners, ruined its business and made it harder to manage smoothly.

A group of Russian journalists who quit Vedomosti, a top Russian business newspaper, established VTimes last year. However, the Russian authorities targeted VTimes last month due to some news reports that criticized government policies. “The ‘foreign agent’ label […] has ruined VTimes‘ business model—and we set up this outlet as a business,” VTimes said in a statement. “Advertisers and partners do not understand how to work with a ‘foreign agent’ — and we cannot judge them for that.”

Russian authorities used to label various foreign-funded organizations involved in political activities as foreign agent. The designation requires organizations to publish a 24-word announcement saying their publications are distributed by a media outlet “fulfilling the function of a foreign agent.”

KEY POINTS:

• VTimes closed due to foreign agent designation by Russian authorities.
• The label affected relationships with advertisers and partners.
• VTimes was founded by journalists from Vedomosti last year.
• The crackdown on media has intensified in Russia.
• Organizations labeled as foreign agents face strict operational guidelines.