Putin Secretly Honors 300 Journalists For 'Objective' Crimea Coverage

Russian President Vladimir Putin secretly gave out awards and medals to more than 300 media workers for their "objective" coverage of events in Crimea, reported "Vedomosti," one of the few relatively independent newspapers left in Russia in its May 5 edition. Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the decision to "The Moscow Times," adding, however, that the Kremlin did "not plan to [provide] any details about it." Putin quietly signed the decree on April 22, one month after formally sealing an internationally unrecognized annexation of Crimea. Quoting a source familiar with the document, "Vedomosti" reported that the journalists were honored for their "high-level professionalism" and "objective coverage of events in Crimea" as Russian forces took control of the Ukrainian peninsula. The newspaper noted that the decree was not published on the presidential website.


http://www.rferl.org/content/putin-awards-journalists-objective-crimea-coverage/25373844.html

Putin Shuts Down RIA Novosti News Agency

In a surprise decree published on the Kremlin’s website on Monday, Russia's President Vladimir Putin “liquidated” the RIA Novosti news agency and created a new organization called Rossia Segodnya , or Russia Today — in what many commentators see as a decision to eliminate one of the most balanced news outlets in the Kremlin’s sprawling portfolio of news agencies, newspapers and television stations. “The main focus of the International News Agency Russia Today is to inform abroad about the State Policy of the Russian Federation and public life in the Russian Federation,” the decree said. In contrast to state-owned Federal television channels, which are tightly controlled by the Kremlin and have a reputation for screening hatchet jobs on opposition figures, RIA Novosti appeared to have a licence to operate relatively freely, reporting controversial stories including the 2012 anti-Putin protests in Moscow, and more recently the pro-Europe protests in Ukraine, with little if any bias. In particular, RIA's website was a major source of news for this blog.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/10505386/Vladimir-Putin-dissolves-Russias-RIA-Novosti.html
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-25299116

US Urges Russia to Protect Reporters, Human Rights Activists

The US Department of State issued a statement on Monday in memory of journalists Natalya Estemirova and Paul Klebnikov, whose killers have never been brought to justice in Russia. “We honor the memories of Ms. Estemirova and Mr. Klebnikov by calling for an end to the impunity for abuses in the North Caucasus and elsewhere in Russia,” the statement by Spokesperson Jen Psaki said. “We urge the Russian Government to protect journalists and human rights defenders, in accordance with the international agreements to which Russia is a party,” the statement said. Estemirova, an outspoken critic of the Chechen authorities, was abducted in the regional capital Grozny on July 15, 2009, and was later found shot dead in neighboring Ingushetia. Klebnikov, the first editor-in-chief of the Forbes Russia magazine, was killed leaving his office in central Moscow on July 9, 2004. Both murders, which remain unsolved, have caused an international and domestic outcry and highlighted the dangers faced by journalists and rights workers in Russia.

http://en.ria.ru/russia/20130716/182257232/US-Urges-Russia-to-Protect-Reporters-Human-Rights-Activists.html

Journalist Gunned Down in Russia's Dagestan

A journalist killed Tuesday in the volatile North Caucasus Republic of Dagestan was likely to have been assassinated because of his work, according to investigators. Akhmednabi Akhmednabiev, an editor at local newspaper "Novoe Delo," died in his car outside his house in Makhachkala, the regional capital, after it was fired on at about 7:00 a.m. by unknown assailants, the Investigative Committee said in a statement. Various motives for the crime are being considered, but the “most likely version is that Akhmednabiev’s murder is linked to his professional activities,” according to the Investigative Committee. A criminal case has been opened into the murder. Akhmednabiev was a deputy editor at Novoe Delo, a weekly newspaper founded in 1991, where he wrote about Dagestani politics, according to the publication's website. The journalist had been the intended target of at least one other assassination attempt: he escaped unscathed from a January attack when his car was shot up, the Investigative Committee said.

http://en.ria.ru/russia/20130709/182137312/Journalist-Gunned-Down-in-Dagestan---Investigators.html

Tajikistan Jams Russian Radio Station

Tajikistan authorities began to jam the signal of Russian radio station Zvezda broadcast from the Russian military base in Dushanbe. Tajik Communication Agency spokesman Samad Khikmatov said that the signal covered all Dushanbe and the station had no official permission to broadcast in Tajikistan. "We took measures to jam the signal covering all Dushanbe territory," the official explained.

http://ria.ru/society/20130503/935728768.html