Golunov everywhere

How state TV channels covered the end of Ivan Golunov's case at the top of the hour

On June 11, drug possession and attempted sale charges against Meduza correspondent Ivan Golunov were dropped for lack of evidence. The persecution of Golunov, which began when he was arrested on June 6, sparked a historic level of public support, especially among Russian journalists. Early in the case’s proceedings, state media coverage was sparse: Golunov’s arrest was barely mentioned on TV news programs, and even the popular compiler Yandex News somehow failed to bring stories about Golunov to the top of its page. Following an announcement from Russia’s Internal Affairs Minister that Ivan Golunov will be freed, however, even state-owned television programs are airing segments with the news at the top of the hour. Here’s what that flood of coverage looked like.

Rossiya 24

Channel One

NTV

Moscow 24

TASS

Galina Timchenko The words “Criminal prosecution against Ivan Golunov shut down” displayed on the headquarters of one of Russia's two major wire services

The official website of the Internal Affairs Ministry

Meduza The official notification that announced the arrest of Ivan Golunov and featured photographs of the drugs he supposedly possessed is now labeled “News brief annulled.”

From the Twitterverse

Mikhail Zelenskiy Channel One news at six: Top of the hour: Golunov! Second: Titiev!!! Third: Volgograd Investigative Committee!!!!!! And only FOURTH: Putin

@protivorechie Golunov walks into the Internet, and all he sees is Golunov.