Moscow Court Rejected Moskvy's Appeal Against Broadcasting Restrictions

Ekho Moskvy, an independent radio station in Moscow, has lost an appeal against measures taken by the government, which led to its closure. Upon the request of the Prosecutor-General, the Taganka district court refused to recognize as illegal the March 1 decision of Russian media regulator Roskomnadzor to restrict access to Ekho Moskvy's website.

In her ruling, Judge Nadezhda Kiselyova stated that the statements made by Ekho Moskvy's lawyers, which argued that the Prosecutor-General's request did not specify which programs at the station violated Russian law, were illogical and therefore, the appeal must be dismissed.

The Prosecutor-General's Office stated in March that the broadcaster, known for its opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin, was distributing what authorities considered information "calling for extremist activities, violence, and premeditated false information" regarding Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It has been instructed by the Russian government that media outlets should refrain from referring to Russia's actions in Ukraine as war or invasion and should instead refer to them as "special military operations."

Ekho Moskvy's board of directors decided to dissolve the radio station and its website shortly after the Prosecutor-General's Office took action. The first episode of Ekho Moskvy aired on August 22, 1990, in Moscow. As of February 24, 2012, Russia had only taken the station off the air once, during the 1991 coup by the State Committee for Emergency Situations (GKChP).

There are several Russian media outlets which have suspended operations in order to avoid heavy restrictions on what they may report. In addition, the Kremlin has blocked numerous foreign news outlets for their independent reporting on the war, including RFE/RL.