In Latvia, a place of accommodation for Russian freelance journalists

Studija is a Latvian television channel, but also a place of accommodation for journalists from the independent Russian media Dojd. A young team of around sixty people now works in these modern premises. They hastily fled Russia a month after the start of the war in Ukraine and the passage of a law criminalizing the dissemination of false information about the Russian army. “Our goal is to ensure that people have as much as possible the real information about what is happening, and not this propaganda broadcast on Russian television channels”explains Tikhon Dzyadko, editor-in-chief of Dojd.

On Russian screens, another version has been delivered since the beginning of the conflict in Ukraine. “The special operation” is dissected in daily debates by journalists close to power. Dojd, which means rain in Russian, has been offering an independent program since its creation in 2010, very different from this false reality. Today, the medium manages to broadcast reports in Russia, despite censorship. Since the start of the war in Ukraine, around 300 Russian journalists have gone to Latvia. Among those who remained in Russia, some are currently in prison.