(FreedomBeacon.com)- On February 26, the editor-in-chief of the Kremlin-backed Russia Today’s Russian-language edition resigned from her job in protest of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Maria Baronova had spoken out in a post on Telegram two days after the invasion began, describing Putin’s government as “totalitarian” and accusing the Kremlin of turning life in Russia into “an endless hell.”
Baronova confirmed she resigned during an interview with the outlet Znak last Wednesday, but said would not be saying anything further about her resignation.
The question is, will Baronova face retribution from the Kremlin over her public opposition to the war in Ukraine?
One intel expert who spoke to Fox News said it is unlikely Putin will bother with such a “small fish.” Rebekah Koffler told Fox News Digital last week that Putin saves his retribution for people like opposition leader Alexei Navalny. But that doesn’t mean a pro-Putin group won’t do it for him without an official order from the Kremlin.
While Putin hasn’t been directly tied to the murder of Russian journalists, that isn’t to say they haven’t been killed. Since 1992, 38 journalists have been murdered in Russia and most of those cases remain unsolved. In addition, another seven Russian journalists have gone missing and have never been found.
Last week, Moscow began cracking down on journalists over claims of reporting false information about the Ukraine invasion.
On Friday, Russian lawmakers passed a law carrying a sentence of up to 15 years in prison for journalists and others who spread “misinformation” about Russia’s armed forces.
At least two independent media outlets have been taken off the air last week after Kremlin officials accused them of false reporting. So-called “false reporting” includes referring to the invasion of Ukraine as an “invasion” or “war.” Instead, outlets must refer to events in Ukraine as a “defensive operation” against Ukrainian aggression.
In a further attempt to control the flow of information, on Friday, the Kremlin barred access to Facebook and Twitter.
Meanwhile, CBS News, ABC News, CNN, Bloomberg, the BBC, and Canada’s CBC announced last week they were curbing their coverage in Russia to protest Moscow’s censorship of Russian news outlets.
