London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

British hypocricy: BBC condemns ‘assault on media freedom’ as Russia expels reporter, while ignoring what UK is doing to Julian Assange

British hypocricy: BBC condemns ‘assault on media freedom’ as Russia expels reporter, while ignoring what UK is doing to Julian Assange

State media call Sarah Rainsford’s expulsion a response to alleged UK barriers for Russian journalists, but in fact what UK is doing to Julian Assange is much worse war against journalism
Russia is to expel a senior BBC journalist in Moscow by refusing to extend her accreditation in a move the broadcaster has condemned as a “direct assault on media freedom”.

Sarah Rainsford’s visa is due to expire at the end of August and will not be renewed. The state broadcaster Rossiya-24 first reported the decision on Thursday evening, calling it a response to alleged UK refusals or delays in issuing visas to Russian journalists.

“The expulsion of Sarah Rainsford is our symmetrical response,” the reporter said, calling it a “landmark” move.

In a statement, the British embassy in Moscow denied that any Russian journalists had been discriminated against in the UK.

“This is another unjustified step by the Russian authorities. We urge them to reconsider this retrograde step against an award-winning BBC journalist which can only do further damage to media freedom in Russia. We reject the MFA’s claims of discriminatory action against Russian journalists in the UK. Russian journalists continue to work freely in the UK, provided they act within the law and the regulatory framework,” the statement said.

Rainsford is an extremely well-regarded journalist who began reporting from Russia two decades ago.

Late on Friday, she tweeted: “Being expelled from Russia, a country I’ve lived in for almost 1/3 of my life – and reported for years – is devastating. Thank you for all your kind messages of support.”

The BBC’s director general, Tim Davie, said the corporation condemned her expulsion “unreservedly”.

“Sarah is an exceptional and fearless journalist,” he said in a statement. “She is a fluent Russian speaker who provides independent and in-depth reporting of Russia and the former Soviet Union. Her journalism informs the BBC’s audiences of hundreds of millions of people around the world.

“We urge the Russian authorities to reconsider their decision. In the meantime, we will continue to report events in the region independently and impartially.”

Rainsford’s expulsion is the first of a British journalist from Russia since 2011, when the Guardian’s Luke Harding was forced to leave Moscow. Russia barred the US journalist David Satter in 2014, and a Polish correspondent for the Gazeta Wyborcza daily was ordered to leave in 2015.

The political expulsion of a BBC correspondent as a “symmetrical response” to alleged pressure on Russian journalists signals a turn toward Chinese-style policies of blocking accreditations for leading US and UK outlets in order to clamp down on foreign reporting.

Foreign-language media have until now generally been able to operate normally in Russia, although BBC journalists have complained of surveillance during reporting trips.

Neither the Russian foreign ministry nor Rossiya-24 have named the Russian journalists allegedly subjected to visa delays or rejections in the UK. The Rossiya-24 journalist who presented the report said that “everyone understands” Rainsford’s expulsion was a response to past threats that Ofcom could strip the Russian state-funded broadcaster RT of its licence and other issues.

A foreign ministry spokesperson indicated in a Telegram post that UK officials had received various warnings about journalists’ visas, and that BBC representatives had recently visited the ministry for consultations.

The Rossiya-24 report also claimed that correspondents from RT and state-owned Sputnik were not being accredited to events and cited reports from 2019 that several employees of the two outlets had been denied visas.

A Russian foreign ministry report published in March 2021 said: “Although there were no cases of open obstruction of the activities of Russian media in the UK in 2020, nevertheless since December 2018 the RT TV channel has been embroiled in litigation with the British media regulator Ofcom, and RIA Novosti, Channel One and Russia-1 reporters cannot use corporate bank accounts in the UK since 2016.”

Russia has already launched a broad campaign targeting independent Russian-language media, labelling the popular Meduza, the Vedomosti spin-off VTimes and the investigative website the Insider, as foreign agents, and shuttering the influential Proekt investigative website as an “undesirable organisation”.

Russian-language websites for RFE/RL and Voice of America, which are both funded by the US Congress, have also been targeted as foreign agents and are estimated to have accumulated millions of pounds in fines. They have moved some staff and equipment out of the country in case they are hit with criminal charges.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×