Stories from RuNet Echo
Russian protesters rally in support of jailed opposition leader Alexey Navalny
Unusually large numbers of Russian citizens are protesting against the imprisonment of opposition leader Alexey Navalny - on the street and on TikTok.
‘How do you live here?’ A local podcaster takes on misconceptions about eastern Ukraine
In Slavyansk, one podcaster is attempting to refocus outsiders' perspectives of eastern Ukraine — for Nika Perepelitsa, it is not simply the site of tragedies, but also of diverse cultural...
A new magazine tells chilling stories from Russia's remote regions
Over the year since it was founded, the award-winning Holod Media has captivated Russian audiences with its longform stories on inequality and injustice in regions poorly covered by federal media.
In Belarus, tech workers fear for their industry’s future
Longtime Belarusian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka boasts that he has created a "paradise" for Belarusian IT. So why are young tech workers protesting against him — or even moving their businesses...
Who is selling Ukrainians’ personal data online and for what purposes?
A trove of Ukrainians'' personal data available online as a consequence of leaks or illegal sale creates ripe conditions for targeted dissemination of malicious content ahead of October 25 local...
#AnswerUsElonMusk: Russia's indigenous peoples campaign against Arctic pollution
An oil spill in May devastated large swathes of the tundra. Here's how indigenous rights activists joined forces to demand justice from the culprit — Russia's largest nickel producer.
‘The house search was the last straw': colleagues react to Russian journalist’s death
On October 2, Russian journalist Irina Slavina died in Nizhny Novgorod, the city to which she dedicated her life. Here, Slavina’s colleagues pay homage to a courageous journalist.
The path to the square: The role of digital technologies in Belarus’ protests
Today, state violence against protests is becoming less effective in suppressing them. As the situation in Belarus shows, violence provides a new motivation for people to take to the streets.
‘Concerned IT specialists’ launch database of detained Belarusian protesters
Since August 9, over 7,000 people have been detained in mass protests against the Belarusian government. A new database provides their names and locations — in a bid to get...
How one Telegram channel became central to Belarus’ protests
A channel on the Telegram messeng er service run by four Belarusian journalists in Poland has become a crucial source of information on the political upheavals in their homeland
Russian journalist avoids jail term for ‘justifying terrorism’ – and fears a new assault on press freedoms
While her conviction remains in force, Svetlana Prokopyeva has avoided a prison sentence. The verdict was a silver lining in a new wave of arrests and criminal cases against journalists.
Russia scales up electronic voting for key referendum, but misses security issues
As Russia goes to the polls this week in a constitutional referendum, several regions will be voting online. But the new digital voting system has some serious shortcomings.
Viktor Tsoi: The undying icon of Soviet dissident rock
Fans of Soviet rock star Viktor Tsoi mark his birthday, June 21, remembering his freedom-loving songs that still resonate three decades after his death in 1990.
‘Where is the center of the story?': Revisiting the traditional view of Russia's Muslim communities
Global Voices spoke to academic Danielle Ross about her challenging view of the history of Islam and Islamic reform in Russia.
The mural will not be whitewashed: How dissident poet Joseph Brodsky continues to inspire free-thinking Russians
The 80th anniversary of the birth of Russian poet Joseph Brodsky was marked in Russia by an incident highlighting the special place writers still hold in Russian political culture.
A conversation with Udmurt language digital activist Artyom Malykh
"My primary motivation is to keep the language of my community alive. Udmurt must be used in as wide a variety of spaces as possible in order to ensure that...
Russian doctors’ union launches ‘map of problems’ faced by medics during COVID-19
Russia's medical staff are increasingly vocal about hospital conditions and a lack of personal protective equipment during the pandemic. This interactive map allows them to tell the world about it.
Kremlin expands online voting possibilities amid COVID-19 fears
After the Russian government passed a bill expanding possibilities for voting online and by post, journalists and digital rights activists have started to question its potential for abuse.
Journalists in Russia's regions catalogue the ‘unseen victims’ of COVID-19
The wider social and economic consequences of COVID-19 have destroyed livelihoods and sometimes ended lives. Coronavictims.ru exists to catalogue what its founders call the "unseen" victims of the pandemic.
‘We're staying home today’: The unexpected anthem of Russia's COVID-19 lockdown
"We're staying home today," a 2017 song by Moscow band Hadn Dadn, has captivated a country cautiously emerging from lockdown.
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Maxim Edwards is the RuNet Echo editor. Email him story ideas or volunteer to write.
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