February 26, 2022

Fighting for Truth


Fighting for Truth

State censor Roskomnadzor has notified 10 Russia mass media outlets that they must restrict access to "inaccurate information." The outlets are Ekho Moskvy, InoSMI, Mediazona, The New Times, Dozhd, Svobodnaya Pressa, Krym.Realii, " Novaya Gazeta, Journalist, and Lenizdat.

Roskomnadzor said the publications have published “inaccurate, socially significant information that does not correspond to reality” about the shelling of Ukrainian cities by Russian troops and the death of civilians in Ukraine, as well as “materials in which the ongoing operation is called an attack, an invasion, or a declaration of war.”

If the publications are not removed, Roskomnadzor may block the publications and/or fine them up to five million rubles. According to Roskomnadzor, only “Russian official information sources” disseminate reliable information about the war with Ukraine.

Roskomnadzor objects to the Russian "special military action" being called an attack, an invasion, or a declaration of war, all three of which are the most accurate descriptions of the reality we see unfolding.


Ukrainian flag in windowMeanwhile, Arzamas editor Dmitry Golubovsky has been detained for refusing to remove a poster from his apartment window – a blue and yellow flag of Ukraine that said simply, "No to War."


On February 25, the day after the start of the war, Russian teachers published a petition in which they openly supported the anti-war protests and demanded a ceasefire. At the time of this posts' publication, it had been signed by more than 1,300 teachers from 65 regions of Russia, as well as from other countries.

Said one teacher, in an interview with Meduza, "Of course, I'm afraid to express my protest. But considering the hell is going on in Kyiv right now - literally a day's drive away - it's just shameful to complain about one's own fear."


More than two thousand artists, art historians, architects, producers, curators, musicians, and other cultural figures have signed an open letter against the war with Ukraine. Hundreds of doctors have signed their own letter.


A petition to stop the war has been created on change.org and as of the time of this post it had 700,000 signatures.


The UN General Secretary estimates that over 100,000 Ukrainians have been forced to flee their homes because of the Russian invasion.

Like this post? Get a weekly email digest + member-only deals

Some of Our Books

Murder and the Muse

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.
Jews in Service to the Tsar

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.
Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

Steppe / Степь (bilingual)

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.
Moscow and Muscovites

Moscow and Muscovites

Vladimir Gilyarovsky's classic portrait of the Russian capital is one of Russians’ most beloved books. Yet it has never before been translated into English. Until now! It is a spectactular verbal pastiche: conversation, from gutter gibberish to the drawing room; oratory, from illiterates to aristocrats; prose, from boilerplate to Tolstoy; poetry, from earthy humor to Pushkin. 
Murder at the Dacha

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.
Survival Russian

Survival Russian

Survival Russian is an intensely practical guide to conversational, colloquial and culture-rich Russian. It uses humor, current events and thematically-driven essays to deepen readers’ understanding of Russian language and culture. This enlarged Second Edition of Survival Russian includes over 90 essays and illuminates over 2000 invaluable Russian phrases and words.
The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas

This exciting new trilogy by a Russian author – who has been compared to Orhan Pamuk and Umberto Eco – vividly recreates a lost world, yet its passions and characters are entirely relevant to the present day. Full of mystery, memorable characters, and non-stop adventure, The Pet Hawk of the House of Abbas is a must read for lovers of historical fiction and international thrillers.  
Tolstoy Bilingual

Tolstoy Bilingual

This compact, yet surprisingly broad look at the life and work of Tolstoy spans from one of his earliest stories to one of his last, looking at works that made him famous and others that made him notorious. 
Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

Davai! The Russians and Their Vodka

In this comprehensive, quixotic and addictive book, Edwin Trommelen explores all facets of the Russian obsession with vodka. Peering chiefly through the lenses of history and literature, Trommelen offers up an appropriately complex, rich and bittersweet portrait, based on great respect for Russian culture.
Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar

Bears in the Caviar is a hilarious and insightful memoir by a diplomat who was “present at the creation” of US-Soviet relations. Charles Thayer headed off to Russia in 1933, calculating that if he could just learn Russian and be on the spot when the US and USSR established relations, he could make himself indispensable and start a career in the foreign service. Remarkably, he pulled it of.
Turgenev Bilingual

Turgenev Bilingual

A sampling of Ivan Turgenev's masterful short stories, plays, novellas and novels. Bilingual, with English and accented Russian texts running side by side on adjoining pages.

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