Moscow News
Encyclopedia
The Moscow News, which began publication in 1930, is Russia
’s oldest English-language publication newspaper
. Many of its feature articles used to be translated from the now defunct Russian Moskovskiye Novosti
.
and approved by the Communist leadership - at that time already fully controlled by Joseph Stalin
- in 1930 as an international newspaper with the purpose of spreading the ideas of socialism to international audience. The paper was soon published in many languages, including major world languages, such as French
, German
, Spanish
, and Arabic
, as well as languages of neighboring countries, such as Finnish
.
In 1949, The Moscow News was shut down after its editor-in-chief, Mikhail Borodin
, was arrested (and most likely died in a prison camp (Gulag
s). The paper resumed publication under the supervision of the Communist Party
on January 4, 1956.
At the onset of perestroika
, the freeing of the press gave it the opportunity to openly address the democratic processes. Sergey Roy, who became the editor-in-chief in the late 1980s, made the Moscow News one of the first Soviet papers to experiment with glasnost
and publish increasingly critical articles by a range of prominent intellectuals. Readership increased to one million copies per week and the paper was read throughout the country.
In 2004, the Moscow News began to introduce a fully colored front-page.
Under President Vladimir Putin
, and suffering from declining sales, Moscow News was bought by Mikhail Khodorkovsky
, one of Russia's oligarchs
and owner of Yukos
. Khodorovsky hired Yevgeny Kiselyov, an outspoken liberal
journalist who started a scandal in the ranks by firing nine veteran journalists. Kiselyov was eventually replaced.
The Moscow News has had numerous other owners: Ogonyok
, International Book, and the All-Union Society of Cultural Ties with Foreign Countries among others have had a stake in the historic newspaper at one time or another.
Since 2007, the English version of The Moscow News is partially owned by Russian information agency RIA Novosti. Until the end of 2007, some of its articles were translated from Moskovskiye Novosti
, which closed down. The name "Moscow News" belongs to Arcadi Gaydamak
,a businessman who now lives in Israel and who proposed in March 2006 to buy back 100% of France Soir
shares.
Between January and September 2007, the paper was managed by Anthony Louis, who introduced several changes. The paper's format was changed to a completely new layout with new fonts and masthead design. The paper went from 16 to 32 pages and featured a variety of popular columnists, both Russian and foreigners. Local and business coverage was expanded, as well as a sport and local section that features regular original writing by staff writers, most of whom are expatriates living in Moscow.
Distribution on domestic and international Aeroflot
flights was reintroduced as well. The paper is available or free at many business establishments in the Russian capital, and is sold in kiosks at prominent locations, such as Pushkin Square
Between September 2007 and February 2009, the editor-in-chief was Robert Bridge.
The paper is financed entirely by its owners. It runs occasional advertisement, and is distributed largely for free. It continues to run both Russian and global news and columns by writers including Peter Lavelle
, James Brooke
and Mark Galeotti
.
The current editor-in-chief is Tim Wall.
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
’s oldest English-language publication newspaper
Newspaper
A newspaper is a scheduled publication containing news of current events, informative articles, diverse features and advertising. It usually is printed on relatively inexpensive, low-grade paper such as newsprint. By 2007, there were 6580 daily newspapers in the world selling 395 million copies a...
. Many of its feature articles used to be translated from the now defunct Russian Moskovskiye Novosti
Moskovskiye Novosti
Moskovskiye Novosti will be a daily newspaper in Russia to be relaunched in 2011.It was previously a long-established weekly newspaper aimed at an educated, elite audience. In 2005-2008 it was owned by Arcadi Gaydamak. It is published in the Russian language...
.
History
The Moscow News was founded by American socialist Anna Louise StrongAnna Louise Strong
Anna Louise Strong was a twentieth-century American journalist and activist, best known for her reporting on and support for communist movements in the Soviet Union and the People's Republic of China.-Early years:...
and approved by the Communist leadership - at that time already fully controlled by Joseph Stalin
Joseph Stalin
Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...
- in 1930 as an international newspaper with the purpose of spreading the ideas of socialism to international audience. The paper was soon published in many languages, including major world languages, such as French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
, and Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, as well as languages of neighboring countries, such as Finnish
Finnish language
Finnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
.
In 1949, The Moscow News was shut down after its editor-in-chief, Mikhail Borodin
Mikhail Borodin
Mikhail Markovich Borodin was the alias of Mikhail Gruzenberg, a Comintern agent and Soviet arms dealer....
, was arrested (and most likely died in a prison camp (Gulag
Gulag
The Gulag was the government agency that administered the main Soviet forced labor camp systems. While the camps housed a wide range of convicts, from petty criminals to political prisoners, large numbers were convicted by simplified procedures, such as NKVD troikas and other instruments of...
s). The paper resumed publication under the supervision of the Communist Party
Communist Party of the Soviet Union
The Communist Party of the Soviet Union was the only legal, ruling political party in the Soviet Union and one of the largest communist organizations in the world...
on January 4, 1956.
At the onset of perestroika
Perestroika
Perestroika was a political movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union during 1980s, widely associated with the Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev...
, the freeing of the press gave it the opportunity to openly address the democratic processes. Sergey Roy, who became the editor-in-chief in the late 1980s, made the Moscow News one of the first Soviet papers to experiment with glasnost
Glasnost
Glasnost was the policy of maximal publicity, openness, and transparency in the activities of all government institutions in the Soviet Union, together with freedom of information, introduced by Mikhail Gorbachev in the second half of the 1980s...
and publish increasingly critical articles by a range of prominent intellectuals. Readership increased to one million copies per week and the paper was read throughout the country.
In 2004, the Moscow News began to introduce a fully colored front-page.
Under President Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
, and suffering from declining sales, Moscow News was bought by Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Mikhail Khodorkovsky
Mikhail Borisovich Khodorkovsky is a Russian prisoner, considered by some - such as Amnesty International - to have been imprisoned for political reasons, jailed until 2016 and a former Russian oligarch and businessman...
, one of Russia's oligarchs
Business oligarch
Business oligarch is a near-synonym of the term "business magnate", borrowed by the English speaking and western media from post-Soviet parlance to describe the huge, fast-acquired wealth of some businessmen of the former Soviet republics during the privatization in Russia and other post-Soviet...
and owner of Yukos
YUKOS
OJSC "Yukos Oil Company" was a petroleum company in Russia which, until 2003, was controlled by Russian oligarch Mikhail Khodorkovsky and a number of other prominent Russian businessmen. After Yukos was bankrupted, Khodorkovsky was convicted and sent to prison.Yukos headquarters was located in...
. Khodorovsky hired Yevgeny Kiselyov, an outspoken liberal
Liberalism in Russia
This article gives an overview of liberalism in Russia. It is limited to liberal parties with substantial support, namely those that have had a representation in parliament. The sign ⇒ denotes another party in the scheme. The listed parties didn't necessarily label themselves as...
journalist who started a scandal in the ranks by firing nine veteran journalists. Kiselyov was eventually replaced.
The Moscow News has had numerous other owners: Ogonyok
Ogonyok
Ogoniok is one of the oldest weekly illustrated magazines in Russia, issued since . It was re-established in the Soviet Union in 1923 by Mikhail Koltsov....
, International Book, and the All-Union Society of Cultural Ties with Foreign Countries among others have had a stake in the historic newspaper at one time or another.
Since 2007, the English version of The Moscow News is partially owned by Russian information agency RIA Novosti. Until the end of 2007, some of its articles were translated from Moskovskiye Novosti
Moskovskiye Novosti
Moskovskiye Novosti will be a daily newspaper in Russia to be relaunched in 2011.It was previously a long-established weekly newspaper aimed at an educated, elite audience. In 2005-2008 it was owned by Arcadi Gaydamak. It is published in the Russian language...
, which closed down. The name "Moscow News" belongs to Arcadi Gaydamak
Arcadi Gaydamak
Arcadi Aleksandrovich Gaydamak, is a Russian-Israeli businessman, who was awarded the Order of the Legion of Honour. On April 29, 2011 the Court of Appeal in Paris acquitted him of charges of arms dealing...
,a businessman who now lives in Israel and who proposed in March 2006 to buy back 100% of France Soir
France Soir
France Soir is a French daily newspaper that prospered during the 1950s and 1960s, but it has declined since then under various owners. It was re-launched as a populist tabloid in 2006.-History:...
shares.
Between January and September 2007, the paper was managed by Anthony Louis, who introduced several changes. The paper's format was changed to a completely new layout with new fonts and masthead design. The paper went from 16 to 32 pages and featured a variety of popular columnists, both Russian and foreigners. Local and business coverage was expanded, as well as a sport and local section that features regular original writing by staff writers, most of whom are expatriates living in Moscow.
Distribution on domestic and international Aeroflot
Aeroflot
OJSC AeroflotRussian Airlines , commonly known as Aeroflot , is the flag carrier and largest airline of the Russian Federation, based on passengers carried per year...
flights was reintroduced as well. The paper is available or free at many business establishments in the Russian capital, and is sold in kiosks at prominent locations, such as Pushkin Square
Pushkin Square
Pushkinskaya Square or Pushkin Square in Moscow, historically known as Strastnaya Square and renamed for Alexander Pushkin in 1937, is located at the junction of the Boulevard Ring and Tverskaya Street, 2 km northwest of the Kremlin...
Between September 2007 and February 2009, the editor-in-chief was Robert Bridge.
The paper is financed entirely by its owners. It runs occasional advertisement, and is distributed largely for free. It continues to run both Russian and global news and columns by writers including Peter Lavelle
Peter Lavelle
Peter J. Lavelle is host of CrossTalk, a television program of the Russia-based, publicly-funded English language satellite channel RT. Lavelle, from California and now based in Moscow, is the network's key political commentator....
, James Brooke
James Brooke (journalist)
James Bettner Brooke , an American journalist, is currently the Russia/former Soviet Union Bureau Chief for Voice of America, based in Moscow. For VOA, he writes Russia Watch, a weekly blog. Previously, he worked as Moscow Bureau Chief for Bloomberg...
and Mark Galeotti
Mark Galeotti
Mark Galeotti is Academic Chair of the Center for Global Affairs at New York University and Clinical Full Professor of Global Affairs. He is an expert and prolific author on transnational crime and Russian security affairs....
.
The current editor-in-chief is Tim Wall.