In 2025, 817 cases of attacks/threats against professional and citizen media workers, as well as against editorial offices of traditional and online media outlets in Russia and against Russian journalists in exile, were identified and analysed. The report also documents attacks on foreign journalists that occurred in Russia. Data for the study were collected using open-source content analysis in Russian and English.
The number of attacks in 2025 remained at the same level as in 2024. At the same time, the overall number of politically motivated prosecutions and cases related to public expression declined. Against this backdrop, the number of attacks specifically targeting journalists did not decrease, indicating a rise in their proportion among those subjected to such proceedings.
Twenty-four physical attacks and threats to life, liberty, and health were documented; none of which were fatal. A further 19 non-physical attacks were recorded, including harassment, threats, and online pressure. As in previous years, the overwhelming majority of recorded attacks (774 cases) were carried out via judicial and/or economic means.
94% of attacks (769 cases) were perpetrated by the authorities. Repression against journalists and bloggers appears not as a reaction to specific publications, but as a managed process of controlling the information space, involving the continual fine-tuning of repressive instruments directed both at journalists inside the country and those working in exile.