The key facts

  • Novaya Gazeta staff left the office on Potapovsky Lane, where the editorial office had worked for 29 years
  • Muratov and Sokolov removed portraits of killed journalists from the wall
  • The decision to cease operations was announced on October 13

Farewell to the Potapovsky Lane office

The editorial office of Novaya Gazeta (designated a foreign agent in Russia) published footage of the last working day at its office on Potapovsky Lane — the farewell took place to the song Gazeta.Ru.

What remained in the newsroom

The published photos show empty offices, packed belongings, and in the meeting room, issues of the newspaper from different years laid out on the tables. On the wall hung information about screenings of films about the publication's staff. At the entrance to the building was a sign reading

Muratov, Sokolov and the closed museum

Former editor-in-chief Dmitry Muratov (designated a foreign agent in Russia) came to the newsroom: in the video, he and current editor-in-chief Sergei Sokolov removed black-and-white portraits of journalists who had worked with Novaya Gazeta and died from the wall. Along with the newspaper, the Anna Politkovskaya museum, located in her former office, also closed. Representatives of foreign media — Czech television, CNN, Reuters and others — were also spotted at the building that day.

Context of the decision

The announcement that the outlet was ceasing operations appeared on the Novaya Gazeta website on October 13. Gazeta.Ru also noted that the Kremlin had previously commented on the closure of the publication, but the content of those comments is not given in the available reports. No sources report on the editorial office's further plans.