How Russian exile media bypass censorship: JX Fund study

Independent media in Russia have ceased to exist since the beginning of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine. They were brought into line, closed or ceased operations themselves to avoid closure. The Russian leadership is currently developing a model of digital censorship. One of its most important targets: Russian independent media in exile. The JX Fund has now summarized the situation of these media in the study “Locking Down the Windows”.

Exile media – media that report from abroad – are often the only independent voices that can still reach an audience in their home country and in the diaspora. To enable these media and their creators to continue their work quickly and flexibly in exile after fleeing war and crisis regions, the JX Fund was established in 2022 by Reporter ohne Grenzen, the Rudolf Augstein Foundation and the Schöpflin Foundation. But exile media have another important function: they are a source of information for Russian civil society and partners for Western media coverage. Without them, many media outlets around the world would struggle to report on events in these mostly isolated countries. 

Around 70 exile media report on the web and on social media

The study “Locking Down the Windows” shows the great imbalance in the information available to Russian citizens: While the Kremlin is estimated to spend over two billion euros on disinformation, propaganda and censorship in 2024, the budget for exile media is significantly smaller. By contrast, the approximately seventy independent Russian exile media outlets that the JX Fund examined for the study have a budget of around 41 million euros for the same period. They reach millions of people via websites, YouTube, TikTok or Telegram.

Journalists must therefore remain innovative and agile, constantly seeking out new sources of funding. As the study concludes, Russian exile media remain vulnerable despite their wide reach and sophisticated technologies. While the Russian authorities are upgrading their censorship toolbox, exile media are also developing digital solutions to bypass this censorship – from “magic links” to browser extensions. Therefore, a stable and broad support for Russian exile media is needed from a variety of actors, ideally including large technology companies.