People may have different opinions regarding wars. But most people should know that wars can cost lives, political tensions, and lots of blood and tears that can last for generations.
While some sided with Ukraine, and some sided with Russia, journalists are expected to be more neutral.
After all, they are the ones who deliver the news, in a way that the news need to be unbiased, free from subjective views and personal thoughts.
But not on a Russian news agency website.
At least two journalists were mocking their own government, saying that among others, President Vladimir Putin is a "pathetic and paranoid dictator."
This happened on 8 - 9 May.
About 20 anti-war articles filled the homepage of the Russian pro-government outlet Lenta.ru, with titles that include:
- “Vladimir Putin has turned into a pathetic, paranoid dictator”.
- “Russia is abandoning its soldiers’ corpses in Ukraine”.
- “The Defense Ministry lied to the relatives of the people who died on the Moskva cruiser”.
- “Putin’s closest associate wants to take Russia back 100 years”.
- “Zelensky turned out to be cooler than Putin”.
- “Putin has unleashed one of the bloodiest wars of the 21st century”.
- “The Russian elite turned out to be pathetically weak-willed”.
- “The Russian authorities have prohibited journalists from saying anything negative”.
- “Russia completely destroyed Mariupol”.
- “Russia is threatening to destroy the entire world”.
- “‘It’s easier to hide economic failure with a war.’ Putin needs to go. He’s unleashed a meaningless war and is leading Russia into oblivion”.
All of the above articles were accompanied by a message:
Inside the articles, the authors said things like "the Russian authorities have prohibited journalists from saying anything negative," and saying that the Russian presidential administration "made journalists who work for government-controlled media stop using words and phrases that could cause ‘social unrest’ or ‘create a negative environment."
It was then realized that the articles were made two Lenta.ru employees: Egor Polyakov, head of the outlet's Economy and Environment sections, and Alexandra Miroshnikova, an editor for those sections.
"We’re searching for work, lawyers, and, most likely, political asylum! Don’t be afraid! Don’t be silent! Fight back! You’re not alone — there are many of us! The future is ours! Fuck war. Peace to Ukraine!" the journalists wrote in the article.
It's worth noting that what the journalists did, was replacing articles that had already been published on Lenta.ru with the anti-war materials.
"This was by no means a case of ‘hacking’ — this was a decision Alexandra and I made a relatively long time ago, but we weren’t immediately able to carry out the plan. I can’t say at this point what the reason for that was," said Polyakov.
They justify their actions, saying that it was "the only right thing" they could do under the current circumstances.
The journalists made their move as soon as they fled Russia.
According to the journalist, their access to Lenta.ru's content management system had already been revoked.
The articles have since disappeared from the website, but they have been made available on the Internet Archive.
It's also worth noting that the news went viral in the midst of the traditional military parade for a new anniversary of Victory Day, which commemorates the Soviet triumph over the Nazis.
The May 9 Victory Day is a hugely symbolic day for the Kremlin.
But unlike the many years before 2022, Putin was using the commemoration of the 77th anniversary of the Soviet Union's role in the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945 to justify Russia's war against Ukraine.
While Putin and his aids were at it, not everyone in Russia agrees.
In Russia, amid its war against Ukraine, there are plenty of civilian acts against the war.
For example, graffiti against war conflicts appeared in some Russian cities, including an anti-war graffiti that appeared overnight in the southern Russian city of Volgograd.
Volgograd, formerly Stalingrad, was among the places that saw some of the most bloodiest fighting of World War II.
Isolated protests were happening, which culminated in several arrests.
