Wrongfully Detained: Russia’s Attacks on American Journalists

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Alsu Kurmasheva is the most recent American journalist Russia has wrongfully arrested because of his or her profession and citizenship. On October 18, Russia accused Kurmasheva, a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) journalist based in Prague, of failing to self-register as a “foreign agent”—even though she was in Russia to visit her ailing mother. This is the first known instance of such a charge in Russia. The US government has not yet received official notification of Kurmasheva’s detention from Moscow, has not been granted consular access to Alsu, and has not yet declared Kurmasheva’s case a wrongful detention.

Hudson Institute and RFE/RL invite you to join Pavel Butorin, Alsu Kurmasheva’s husband and the director of Current Time, RFE/RL’s Russian-language digital platform; RFE/RL Acting President Dr. Jeffrey Gedmin; and Wall Street Journal Assistant Editor Paul Beckett for a conversation about Russia’s escalating attacks on American journalists. The event will be moderated by Hudson Institute Media Fellow Jeremy Hunt, with comments from Senior Fellow Olivia Enos.