Meduza.io

1 month ago | meduza.io

A prisoner exchange between Russia and Ukraine involving 1,000 people from each side may take place in the near future, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said after talks in Istanbul, according to RBC Ukraine.

1 month ago | meduza.io

Since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it's become nearly impossible to “stay out of politics” in Russia. Militarization has permeated every corner of society — even the most intimate spheres, like the porn industry. Just three years ago, adult videos were readily available on the Russian social media network VKontakte; now, they’re gone. Back then, the most popular Russian-speaking porn actress, Eva Elfie, was living in Russia. Today, she lives in the U.S. Journalists at Novaya Gazeta Europe recently explored how the war has reshaped Russia’s porn industry. Meduza shares an abridged translation of their reporting.

2 months ago | meduza.io

The Russian authorities are prosecuting more and more “producers and distributors of pornographic materials.” According to a new investigation by Novaya Gazeta Europe, the number of convictions for porn-related offenses jumped 1.5 times between prewar 2021 and 2023 to more than 315. The shift follows a ruling by the Russian Supreme Court’s Plenum, which classified live-streamed performances by webcam models as pornographic productions. Novaya Gazeta Europe journalists examined how Russia’s stricter enforcement of anti-pornography laws has affected the lives of webcam studio workers and given police another tool in the crackdown on queer bloggers. Meduza summarizes their findings.

2 months ago | meduza.io

From April 26 to July 6, the Kunstraum Kreuzberg/Bethanien gallery in Berlin will host “No,” an exhibition curated and organized by Meduza’s newsroom. This project brings together artists and journalists to reflect on the events of the past decade and explore why the world has become so fractured. The exhibition shares the stories of ordinary people caught in unbearable situations, yet determined to remain true to themselves — hence its title. “No” stands as a symbol of resistance and a tribute to those who, against all odds, continue to say “no.”

2 months ago | meduza.io | Sam Breazeale

The Baltic Sea handles around 15 percent of global shipping traffic — approximately 2,500 vessels daily, according to researcher Julian Pawlak. A rising number of these ships belong to Russia’s “shadow fleet,” a group of hundreds of aging, poorly regulated oil tankers that Moscow uses to bypass Western sanctions.