Media

CNN To Stop Broadcasting In Russia Over Putin’s New Criminal Code Against Journalists

(Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images)

Nicole Silverio Media Reporter
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A CNN spokesperson announced the network will no longer broadcast news segments in Russia in response to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s new criminal code against journalists, CNN’s Brian Stelter confirmed Friday.

The spokesperson announced the plan in order to “evaluate the situation” and consider the outlet’s next steps.

“This just in from a CNN spokesperson: ‘CNN will stop broadcasting in Russia while we continue to evaluate the situation and our next steps going forward,'” Stelter said via Twitter.

Oliver Darcy, the outlet’s senior media reporter, also confirmed the news. (RELATED: Journalists On The Ground Reveal How American Media Is Botching Coverage Of Russia) 

The decision reportedly came after President Putin passed a law criminalizing public opposition or independent reporting about the war waged in Ukraine, CNN White House correspondent Kaitlan Collins announced.

Russia’s parliament passed legislation Friday to imprison journalists for up to 15 years for spreading “fake” news about the Russian military and the invasion of Ukraine, the New York Post reported. The new law, set to take effect Saturday, requires journalists to verify their reports on the war with a Russian official.

Bloomberg will also temporarily suspend their journalists from reporting on the ground in Russia due to Putin’s new legislation.

“We have with great regret decided to temporarily suspend our news gathering inside Russia,” Bloomberg’s Editor-in-Chief John Micklethwait said Friday. “The change to the criminal code, which seems designed to turn any independent reporter into a criminal purely by association, makes it impossible to continue any semblance of normal journalism inside the country.”