Russia’s arrest of reporter Evan Gershkovich is another salvo in war against democracy | Editorial

The recent arrest of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on alleged espionage charges is part of a broader attack on the free press in Russia and beyond.

On Monday, a Russian journalist who criticized the war in Ukraine was sentenced to 25 years in prison for treason. Meanwhile, journalists have faced increased attacks in the U.S., including a TV reporter who was shot dead in February while covering a murder in Florida.

With trust in the media near record lows, Gershkovich’s jailing may not attract as much attention as the arrest of women’s professional basketball star Brittney Griner, who spent 10 months in a Russian prison before she was released in December following a prisoner swap.

» READ MORE: U.S. reporter held by Russia on spying charges to stay in jail

But it should be a cause for alarm and further unify the United States against Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unjust war on its neighbor. Gershkovich and other reporters covering Russia have played a vital role in shining a light on Putin’s dark acts in his own country and in Ukraine.

However, instead of the need for a free press bridging the political divide, being anti-media is now part of the GOP’s identity. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a likely presidential candidate, has called for rolling back press freedoms. Meanwhile, attacks on free speech are escalating, while a wave of book bans and bills targeting drag performances and transgender rights are animating the Republican base.

» READ MORE: Trump and DeSantis are giving Putin reason to believe he can win in Ukraine | Trudy Rubin

It’s all part of a disturbing decline toward authoritarianism. In 1983, then-President Ronald Reagan called freedom of the press a “fundamental tenet of American life” and an “essential ingredient” in democracy. Flash forward to 2017, when then-President Donald Trump called the news media the “enemy of the people.”

Trump’s attacks on the press and his continued support for Putin are antidemocratic and anti-American. His actions emboldened dictators, leading to more attacks on the free press around the world, including in Latin America, where at least 30 journalists were killed in 2022.

Gershkovich, 31, is the first American journalist detained in Russia since the Cold War. He is in prison for essentially doing his job. The Journal denied he was a spy and called him a “trusted and dedicated reporter.” The State Department said Gershkovich is being “wrongfully detained” and called for his immediate release.

Gershkovich has lived in Russia for the past six years and by all accounts loved the country and its people. His last story was about the impact of sanctions on the Russian economy. Gershkovich’s parents are Russian Jews who fled the Soviet Union and eventually settled in Princeton, where he and his sister grew up.

Gershkovich’s arrest is part of a broader effort by Putin to silence the media and all free expression. Russia’s leading independent newspaper closed under pressure last year, and its Nobel Peace Prize-winning editor was attacked aboard a train from Moscow. Peaceful protests have also been met with immediate arrest and even torture.

Journalists have long risked their lives to report on corruption and misdeeds. Since 1992, more than 80 journalists and media workers have been Media%20Worker&cc_fips%5B%5D=RS&start_year=1992&end_year=2023&group_by=location">killed in Russia alone, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

» READ MORE: Stop the war on a free press | Editorial

Gershkovich’s arrest underscores Putin’s disregard for international laws and norms as he further antagonizes the West. In March, the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for Putin’s arrest on war crimes in Ukraine, which have included attacks on civilians and the abduction of children.

The Biden administration must rally the world and do all it can to obtain the release of Gershkovich, as well as two other Americans in custody: former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who has been in prison since 2018, and teacher Marc Fogel, who was arrested in 2021 and sentenced to 14 years in prison after a small amount of marijuana was found in his luggage (Fogel said the cannabis had been prescribed by his doctors).

Americans who are losing faith in the media should keep in mind that intimidation, arrests, and violence against journalists aren’t just intolerable assaults on individuals. To attempt to silence the free press is part of the war against democracy.

Journalists are on the front lines of that battle. They need everyone’s support.