How the editorial office of “Evening Vedomosti” lives and writes about, which 55 cases of discrediting the Russian army counted

The publication "Evening Vedomosti" from Yekaterinburg will have to be paid if they suddenly do not win the appeal process, 350 thousand rubles of a fine for almost six dozen cases of discrediting the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation recognized by the court. How did journalists be so “discrediting” the military? And why does the local police, according to them, "sharpen a tooth on them"?

"President of the brain"

"How much free space!" - This is the first thought that comes to mind. Second: "Where is the editors here?" In a muffled light, an affectionate and lining cat rubs on the leg. At the far end of the half -empty room by the window - three tables and three “discreditors”. So they have on their T -shirts.

Employees of the “Evening Vedomosti” - in clothes with the ironic inscriptions “The Center for the Benzer Liberota” and “The City of Demons” - the colorful epithets of TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov to Yekaterinburg.

"Discreditors" is, I think to myself. Only from the last court hearing they have a fine of 200 thousand and 54 of the fact recognized by the authorities of the very “discrediting of the army”.

“Are you really not afraid of anything and so desperate?” Already almost six dozen episodes, aren't you scared?

“Now we can talk about this, before lawyers asked not to tell,” explains the director of the publication Guzel Aitkulov. - We are talking exclusively about the coverage of protests that were February 24. Moreover, each published photograph in our business has become a separate episode. Hence 54 facts.

All publications were posted in the telegram channel "Evening Vedomosti". We are talking about posts on February 24 and several later, talking about anti -war protests in Yekaterinburg. Speech in the capital of the Urals were really massive - only on March 6 on the dam of the city pond, police detained 185 people.

A cat jumps onto the table. “This is Mayusha, she always wants attention,” adds Guzel. Maya lives in the editor for several years: she was thrown, and remained.

“And the most amazing one,” continues Aitkulova. -That all publications are charged with a legal entity-our founder of Technotorg LLC, to which the telegram channel has nothing to do. The founder is responsible only for the website of the publication Viewed.ru. In general, on March 4, when Roskomnadzor forbade the name of the events in Ukraine ****** and began a massive blocking of sites, we decided not to write about hostilities in general, ”she explains.

Alya, a journalist who is responsible for the news agenda of Russia and the world, adds that in the early days, like other editions, “Evening Vedomosti” were not afraid to write a forbidden word and quoted the Ukrainian media. “They called eyewitnesses, local residents from Gorlovka and from Kyiv, who gave us interviews directly from the basements. In the first few days we wrote all this. And then at night with tears in my eyes I cleaned all this from the site, after they announced that this is a special operation, ”she says.

By the way, the editorial certificate of an employee of the Evening Vedomosti Ale was signed just on February 24th. Prior to this, for about ten years she worked in the State Media, where she had a leading position and a good salary: several times more than the one she receives now in an independent publication. “She was the head of the department of producing editors and sat there on all chairs,” she says.

- It was possible to avoid a political agenda, write on public topics, for example, we called directly to the ISS. And then I realized that we were leaving acute topics, and the reader needs them.

I somehow sat in the evening, leafed through our tape and noticed that we have all the news with a congratulation of iconic people begin with the words: "Putin congratulated." I googled and realized that we wrote all the time only. We did not write that the anniversary there is such an artist. It was all from the words "Putin congratulated." And this is no longer self-censorship, but some president of the brain, ”recalls Alevtina.

Then there was a burnout, forced leave and a new job - with another agenda. “Evening Vedomosti” write about political and social problems, as well as about the “communal apartment”, as journalists call it.

-With my arrival, the publication began to pay more attention to some city problems: infrastructure, for example. The fact that the authorities promised to build some kind of object and did not do this, a study of the reasons why new trams are constantly tested in Yekaterinburg, but the city in the end does not purchase them, and the like, ”explains the editor-in-chief of the“ evening Vedomosti ”Vladislav Postnikov. He is a well-known civil activist in Yekaterinburg, twice tried to become a deputy: first in the City Duma in 2020, and then in the Legislative Assembly of the region and the State Duma in 2021. Both times, Postnikov took second place, second only to the candidate from United Russia.

Vlad says that he once wanted to go to the journalism department, but he did not work out, so he has no specialized education. In the "Evening Vedomosti" he came in the fall of 2020 first a journalist.

-I chose this publication, because the owner did not put any restrictions in principle, you can raise any topic. The current owner of the BB - since 2016, the editorial policy over the long years of the publication has changed more than once, ”says Postnikov.

For protests

"Evening Vedomosti" began to go out in Yekaterinburg in 1998. The newspaper was one of the largest successful private projects. The publication existed with the money of a large businessman and, being independent of the authorities, actively criticized the city hall and dealt with acute city problems, for which readers fell in love with him.

Here is a fragment from an interview with the former editor-in-chief of the “Evening Vedomosti” Anton Stulikov to Ean-about the period of the 90s.

- I had the feeling that in all the “power houses” of that time they read only the “evening Vedomosti”. But at the same time, there were the good old “Ural workers”, “Evening Yekaterinburg”, “Change!”?

-I think the “evening statements” in a sense arose in connection with the complete impotence of these newspapers. People there just sat without drive, without desire, something in a Soviet way wrote about milk yield, worked out time. If they were looking for something, attracted, developed-we, perhaps, would not be at all. Although these are all images, it is clear that if the newspaper appears, someone always needs it.

In 2002, they stopped producing the newspaper. In 2010, the project was reanimated, but only in electronic format. During this time, the founders changed several times, and with them the editorial policy.

-Now we have decided to take a significant part of the content to the coverage of protests, because not all media can talk about protests, someone has contracts with state bodies, with the governor, for example, or the city administration. We fundamentally do not have state contracts, ”says Vladislav Postnikov. - I think this ultimately affected. Because the police, so to speak, was sharpened, sharpened, and when the opportunity appeared, she was able to attack us. The mechanisms for this were created.

In addition, journalists say that they also often wrote about the inaction of the police: about cases when law enforcement officers did not go to the crime scene, did not respond to calls, traded drugs directly from the working computer, and corruption in law enforcement agencies. Even journalists illuminated not only the protests themselves, but also brutal detentions and the use of force on them. “It is stipulated in our police law that at a peaceful rally, even if it is unauthorized, the police do not have the right to use special equipment. They used it - pounded with batons unarmed. We betrayed these actions. As a result, it was in the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Yekaterinburg that they decided to issue [the protocols on discrediting] on us, ”the editor adds.

The first protocol for the editorial office was drawn up on April 27. And the second is already in May. After that, Aitkulova claims, as the publication published a video where police officers put Yekaterinburgers on the snow, make them raise their hands and beat with batons. That it has nothing to do with a special operation.

- We very quickly realized that there are two options. On one side of the scales - our opportunity to help people who live in Yekaterinburg and the region and turn to us. At least one person is always coming a week. On the other - a short -lived opportunity to objectively write about the special operation and about events in Ukraine, after which you are most likely blocked and put in prison. And we decided not to write anything about what is happening in Ukraine at all, because it is impossible to cover this situation, following the principles of free journalism. Because the publication of the data of that [Ukrainian] side, in fact, is an illegal action from the point of view of the current Russian legislation, and the publication of reports of the Russian Ministry of Defense automatically turns us into another clip of propaganda. Therefore, no matter how personally this is disturbed, we don’t publish anything about Ukraine at all, we don’t publish information about the dead of the Sverdlovsk people, and these fines seem absurd to us. This is such a “Kharmsovschina”, “Kafkianism”. Because how can you get fines for discrediting the army if you do not write about the Russian army at all, ”Guzel surprises.

But one way or another, the editors have already been fined 350 thousand rubles. Because a few weeks before the court recognized 54 episodes of discredit, he issued one more-for the post in the telegram channel about the detention of street artist Leonid Chernov because of stickers with the inscription "Gruz 200". The security forces of stickers and considered the “discrediting”. At the same time, the artist was not charged with an offense.

It turns out that 150 thousand for a post in a telegram channel with the publication of fragments of stickers and another 200 thousand for the remaining five dozen episodes of discredit.

“You have this money,” I ask.

- No, of course, where, we are a small edition of us only six people. We have no contracts, except for advertising. Therefore, if we cannot appeal these decisions, we will have to collect the donates. Just because we did our job.

Meanwhile, the cat wakes up and moves to another table, to laptops, where, not embarrassed, he puts his head directly on the sticker “City of Demons”. Yesenin looks sadly from the bookcase. Nearby is a slightly faded and yellowed release of the newspaper Plotinka. Her Guzel makes together with schoolchildren and students - future journalists.

Alya recalls how she herself was a student. “I made a diploma on the topic of female military journalism based on the materials of Politkovskaya, Ivleva and Aleksievich. And Aleksievich answered me online, Ivleva too. Anna Stepanovna I sent a letter on October 6th. And already in the morning of the 7th I read that she was killed, ”says Alevtina.

But he adds that there has never been thoughts to leave the profession.

“There was a story recently,” Guzel begins. “I will tell her for Ali, because she never confesses because of modesty.” She has a deaf acquaintance who was diagnosed with diabetes. And he still has a wife and three children - and all with a pathology of hearing. And they were supposed to be evicted from the apartment, because due to illness he was left without work. Before diabetes, he could at least earn his hands, but lost this opportunity. And in our society, it is difficult for a disabled person to find a decent job, so he had nothing to pay a mortgage. Alya wrote a text, looking for lawyers, trying to help somehow, came to Roizman and thanks to him and his publicity in less than a day, you can imagine the money. They have already bought the apartment. Plus, there is still a chance that he will also help his son and he will hear, he is hard of hearing. They really are a very glorious family.

Journalists-"discreditors" say that their task is to help people.

- It seems to me that my fear passed when the police began to pursue us. I was afraid that we would close, I was afraid that we would be blocked. You constantly think about it, you have such a neurosis when you read every letter, every word, even if this material is about the corruption scheme, you still find quotes that seem terrible. Of course, each journalist after February 24, after the adoption of repressive laws for the media, had thoughts to leave. But I love my country and I want it to become better, and while we can do something for this, we will be, ”the guzel concludes. And jokes: all the same, no one knows how much more independent media in Russia remained.