The Moscow Times

The Moscow Times
Name	The Moscow Times
Type	Daily newspaper (online)
Format	Online
Foundation	1992
Founders	Dmitry Muratov; Andrew Paulson; William Jefferson
Language	English; Russian
Headquarters	Moscow

The Moscow Times is an English-language news outlet founded in 1992 in Moscow that reported on Russian politics, business, culture and international affairs. It operated as a print newspaper and later as a digital publication, covering events involving figures such as Boris Yeltsin, Vladimir Putin, Mikhail Gorbachev and institutions like the State Duma, Federation Council and Kremlin. The outlet published reporting on crises including the First Chechen War, Second Chechen War, the 2008 Russo-Georgian War, and the 2014 annexation of Crimea.

History

The publication was launched amid the post-Soviet transition alongside outlets such as Novaya Gazeta, Izvestia, and Kommersant while the media landscape included organizations like RIA Novosti, Interfax and BBC Russian Service. Its editorial timeline intersected with events like the October 1993 constitutional crisis, the 1998 Russian financial crisis, and the 2000 Kursk submarine disaster. During the 2000s it covered policies tied to figures such as Sergei Shoigu, Dmitry Medvedev, Igor Sechin, and actions by companies like Gazprom, Rosneft, Lukoil and Sberbank. The outlet reported on high-profile legal cases involving individuals such as Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Yukos, and Anna Politkovskaya while international relations stories touched on NATO, European Union, U.S. State Department, and leaders including Barack Obama, Donald Trump, Angela Merkel, Emmanuel Macron, and Xi Jinping.

Throughout its lifespan it adapted to digital shifts alongside platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Telegram, as well as partnerships with media like The New York Times, The Guardian, Reuters, Agence France-Presse, and Al Jazeera. Coverage extended to cultural reporting on institutions like the Bolshoi Theatre, State Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow Conservatory, and festivals such as Moscow International Film Festival.

Ownership and Editorial Structure

Ownership changed over time with involvement from investors and media entrepreneurs comparable to figures behind RBC, Gazeta.ru, TV Rain and networks such as Channel One Russia and Russia-1. Board-level decisions intersected with legal frameworks under laws passed by the State Duma and oversight by bodies like the Presidential Administration of Russia and regulatory agency Roskomnadzor. Editors and journalists associated over time included names linked to outlets such as Forbes Russia, Bloomberg, The Economist, Foreign Policy, and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. The newsroom practised standards comparable to those used by Associated Press, Agence France-Presse, Thomson Reuters, and university-affiliated programs at Moscow State University, Higher School of Economics and St. Petersburg State University.

Editorial decisions responded to political pressures similar to those experienced by Euronews, Deutsche Welle, Voice of America, and private papers such as Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The Washington Post. Contributors included correspondents with experience reporting on events like the Rubin-Chechnya agreements and international summits such as the G8, G20 and Valdai Discussion Club conferences.

Content and Coverage

Content included reporting on Russian domestic affairs involving ministries such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defense, and the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as well as business reporting on corporations like Norilsk Nickel, Rusal, VTB Bank, Transneft, and Mail.ru Group. It covered legal and human rights issues related to organizations like Memorial, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and trials overseen in courts such as the Moscow City Court and the European Court of Human Rights. Foreign policy reporting involved entities such as OSCE, United Nations, International Criminal Court, and bilateral relations with countries including Ukraine, Belarus, China, United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Japan, Turkey, Israel, and India.

Cultural journalism covered artists like Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Igor Stravinsky, Dmitri Shostakovich, writers such as Boris Pasternak, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Anna Akhmatova, and events like Victory Day commemorations and exhibitions at the Hermitage Museum, Garage Museum of Contemporary Art, and Gorky Park. Sports coverage included competitions featuring clubs like CSKA Moscow, Spartak Moscow, and events like the FIFA World Cup 2018.

Audience and Distribution

The publication targeted expatriates, diplomats, investors, students, and professionals linked to institutions like U.S. Embassy in Moscow, European External Action Service, United Nations Development Programme, multinational corporations such as McKinsey & Company, Goldman Sachs, Ernst & Young, and academic researchers at Harvard University, Oxford University, Cambridge University, and London School of Economics. Distribution evolved from print circulation in Moscow and Saint Petersburg to online readership accessible globally alongside platforms like Apple App Store, Google Play, and news aggregators such as Google News and Apple Newsroom.

Readership metrics were comparable to international outlets covering Russia, including Foreign Affairs, The Atlantic, Bloomberg Businessweek, and specialized analysts at think tanks such as Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Chatham House, RAND Corporation, Brookings Institution, and Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Controversies and Legal Issues

The outlet faced legal, regulatory, and political challenges similar to those experienced by media organizations like Novaya Gazeta, Meduza, Radio Svoboda, and TV Rain (Dozhd). It reported and was affected by legislation such as laws on "foreign agents" considered by the State Duma and enforcement by Rosfinmonitoring, as well as censorship actions connected to directives from offices like the Presidential Administration of Russia. Journalistic risks paralleled incidents involving individuals and cases such as Anna Politkovskaya's assassination, the arrest of Alexei Navalny, prosecutions tied to the Yukos affair, and libel or defamation suits in courts like the Tverskoy District Court (Moscow).

International responses included statements from bodies like the European Commission, United States Congress, Council of Europe, OSCE, and advocacy by NGOs such as Reporters Without Borders, Committee to Protect Journalists, and International Federation of Journalists. Coverage of sanctions involved entities such as European Union sanctions, U.S. Treasury, Office of Foreign Assets Control, and commercial impacts involving banking partners like HSBC, Deutsche Bank, and Credit Suisse.

Category:Newspapers published in Russia