Media Literacy | World

News, Interrupted
March 11, 2022

Brian S. McGrath

OFF THE AIR The Russian radio station Echo of Moscow said on March 3 that it would shut
down because of new laws that restrict the media.
ALEXANDER MIRIDONOV—KOMMERSANT/POLARIS

On March 4, Russia’s government made it illegal for journalists to report the

facts about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. With that law in place, several

major news organizations have suspended broadcasting in Russia. These

include ABC and CNN. Journalists face up to 15 years in prison for reporting

stories that the Russian government says are fake.

Tim Davie leads the BBC. That’s a British news outlet. “The safety of our

staff is paramount,” he says. “We are not prepared to expose them to the

risk of criminal prosecution simply for doing their jobs.”

Some Russian news outlets are run by the government. They are not

allowed to use the words invasion or war. They call the war in Ukraine a

“special military operation.” They don’t show what’s really happening in

Ukraine. This has led many people in Russia to believe there is no war.

Many global companies that are against the invasion have stopped doing

business in Russia. These include automakers, energy suppliers, and credit-

card companies. The media shutdown in Russia will isolate people even

more.

The Russian government has also limited access to Facebook, Twitter, and
other social-media platforms that publish news in Russian.

“Millions of ordinary Russians will find themselves cut off from reliable
information,” Nick Clegg says. He’s president of global affairs at Meta, which

owns Facebook. Clegg says people will be “deprived of their everyday ways
of connecting with family and friends, and silenced from speaking out.”

For now, the BBC is telling people in Russia to use apps or shortwave radio

to listen to news reports from outside the country. “Access to accurate,

independent information is a fundamental human right, which should not be

denied to the people of Russia,” the BBC says. “We will continue our efforts
to make BBC News available in Russia, and across the rest of the world.”
Stop & Think! WHY is it important to have accurate information? What are

some consequences of having false information?