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OREM — Nobel laureate Dmitry Muratov spoke out against Russian media control and censorship Friday on the one-year anniversary of Russia invading Ukraine.
The Russian journalist spoke at Utah Valley University in a session addressing government corruption, the Nobel Peace Prize, the Russia-Ukraine war and how everyone can fight against propaganda.
UVU President Astrid Tuminez called Muratov "one of the most courageous human beings alive today." But Muratov turned the attention to another group: Ukrainians.
"I'm very concerned when I hear words about courage, my own courage and the courage of my colleagues," Muratov said, speaking in Russian and using an interpreter. "Because I do think that the biggest courage of today is the courage of those people in Ukraine in the war, those children who are suffering."
Muratov commented on the timing of receiving a Nobel Peace Prize just a few months before Russia invaded Ukraine.
"To me it was quite a dramatic event because it turned out that my colleague and (I) got this Nobel Prize just a short time before the world became the edge of the nuclear war," Muratov said. "So addressing this situation, we in my newspaper, Novaya Gazeta, came to the decision that this award has to help those who need help the most: And these are the people in Ukraine."
Muratov received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2021 alongside Maria Ressa of the Philippines "for their efforts to safeguard freedom of expression, which is a precondition for democracy and lasting peace," the Nobel committee said. Both Ressa and Muratov have fought for free speech in countries where journalists have been censored and even murdered.
Muratov auctioned his Nobel Prize medal for $103.5 million last June, the largest sum ever paid for a Nobel Prize. He donated all funds, along with the $500,000 originally awarded with the prize, to UNICEF to help Ukrainian child refugees.
He reported meeting with UNICEF earlier this week and learning that 4.8 million Ukrainian children have received medical care, clean water, shelter and education as a result of this donation.
"There is a great need and we have something we can share, each of us, with the people suffering in Ukraine," Muratov said. He encouraged all to form "a chain of good deeds" in supporting Ukrainian refugees.
"Peace is dependent on progress, and progress is dependent on human rights," he said.
Russian media censorship
Muratov has served as editor-in-chief of the independent Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta since 1995 and was one of the original founders of the company in 1995. Journalists at the Novaya Gazeta criticize the Russian government, calling out corruption and human rights violations.
Tuminez said six of the newspaper's journalists have been killed since 2000, the most well-known of whom is Anna Politkovskaya, who was assassinated in 2006. During his visit to UVU on Friday, Muratov gave Tuminez a photo of Politkovskaya.
"Our message with this picture is that we would like to see Anna Politkovskaya still speaking," Muratov said. "We continue our investigation of that assassination, and we continue to fight for the rights of people in Russia."
Muratov explained that the fate of Russian journalism comes down to the government's control.
"The foundation of each dictatorship is corruption," Muratov said, adding that there has been a "complete destruction of free journalism in Russia."
He said 300 independent media organizations have been shut down in Russia, and around 500 journalists have been labeled enemies of the state and forced to leave the country. More than 240,000 websites have also been blocked.
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Russian President Vladimir Putin says that Moscow is suspending its participation in the last remaining nuclear arms control pact with the United States."The foundation of the regime used to be manipulation and propaganda," Muratov said. "But now it (has) changed to be persecution and terror."
Muratov emphasized that the conduct of the Russian government is not reflective of its people. He conducted a survey revealing that 93% of Novaya Gazeta readers and 73% of the general population of Russia support the end of military actions, compared to Putin's New Year's speech saying that 99% of Russians were willing to die for the country.
"In Moscow, we cannot talk openly about the events in Ukraine; you cannot (call) this event a war," Muratov said. "Each dictatorship always finds a way to rename the things so they will not sound like what they are."
Muratov encouraged listeners to learn to recognize propaganda, how it can manipulate people and how to fight against it.
"I have a firm conviction that your generation can make a difference," Muratov said to the young adults in the audience. "I believe that people have compassion and they are not going to say, 'This war is not in our continent, it's not our war.' They will see it differently. I believe in the anti-war movement which will force politicians to strive for peace."
