July 22, 2024

U.S. Journalist Sentenced


U.S. Journalist Sentenced
Home, sweet home: A Russian penal colony Avtoloer, Wikimedia Commons.

Over a year after his arrest on charges of espionage, American journalist Evan Gershkovich has been sentenced to 16 years in a maximum-security penal colony.

Gershkovich, a reporter at the Wall Street Journal, was arrested in Yekaterinburg on March 29, 2023, while conducting interviews for an article on sentiments toward Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to prosecutors, the FSB learned that Gershkovich was "on assignment from the CIA." Gershkovich denies all charges and has stated that his intentions were purely journalistic. 

Court hearings began June 26 behind closed doors, with only the judge, prosecutors, Gershkovich, and his lawyers present. 

Gershkovich and his lawyers now have 15 days to appeal the sentence. His imprisonment has remained a key point of debate in the ongoing presidential election in the United States, mentioned by both President Biden and former President Trump, promising they will deliver Gershkovich home to the U.S. 

You Might Also Like

Playwright and Director Sentenced
  • July 16, 2024

Playwright and Director Sentenced

The theater director and playwright have been in pre-trial detention for over a year on charges of "justifying terrorism." Now they've been sentenced.
Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of our Books

Steppe
July 15, 2022

Steppe

This is the work that made Chekhov, launching his career as a writer and playwright of national and international renown. Retranslated and updated, this new bilingual edition is a super way to improve your Russian.

Murder and the Muse
December 12, 2016

Murder and the Muse

KGB Chief Andropov has tapped Matyushkin to solve a brazen jewel heist from Picasso’s wife at the posh Metropole Hotel. But when the case bleeds over into murder, machinations, and international intrigue, not everyone is eager to see where the clues might lead.

93 Untranslatable Russian Words
December 01, 2008

93 Untranslatable Russian Words

Every language has concepts, ideas, words and idioms that are nearly impossible to translate into another language. This book looks at nearly 100 such Russian words and offers paths to their understanding and translation by way of examples from literature and everyday life. Difficult to translate words and concepts are introduced with dictionary definitions, then elucidated with citations from literature, speech and prose, helping the student of Russian comprehend the word/concept in context.

Jews in Service to the Tsar
October 09, 2011

Jews in Service to the Tsar

Benjamin Disraeli advised, “Read no history: nothing but biography, for that is life without theory.” With Jews in Service to the Tsar, Lev Berdnikov offers us 28 biographies spanning five centuries of Russian Jewish history, and each portrait opens a new window onto the history of Eastern Europe’s Jews, illuminating dark corners and challenging widely-held conceptions about the role of Jews in Russian history.

Murder at the Dacha
July 01, 2013

Murder at the Dacha

Senior Lieutenant Pavel Matyushkin has a problem. Several, actually. Not the least of them is the fact that a powerful Soviet boss has been murdered, and Matyushkin's surly commander has given him an unreasonably short time frame to close the case.

A Taste of Chekhov
December 24, 2022

A Taste of Chekhov

This compact volume is an introduction to the works of Chekhov the master storyteller, via nine stories spanning the last twenty years of his life.

About Us

Russian Life is a publication of a 30-year-young, award-winning publishing house that creates a bimonthly magazine, books, maps, and other products for Russophiles the world over.

Latest Posts

Our Contacts

Russian Life
73 Main Street, Suite 402
Montpelier VT 05602

802-223-4955