President Putin signed legislation that criminalizes independent reporting in the country, which will temporarily suspend the work of the journalists inside Russia.
John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief of the Bloomberg news organization, said Friday that they had temporarily suspended their news gathering in Russia.
The legislation will impose prison terms of up to 15 years for people charged with spreading fake news or calling for sanctions against the country. It is the latest step in a major purge of independent media in Russia.
Two liberal local broadcasters went off the air Thursday under pressure from prosecutors who demanded that access be restricted because of their coverage of Putin's war in Ukraine. The websites of the British Broadcasting Corporation, Meduza, andDeutsche Welle weren't accessible Friday. Interfax reported that the country's communications regulator blocked Facebook and Twitter.
CNN will stop broadcasting in the country as it evaluates the situation, while the British Broadcasting Corporation suspended work on all of its news journalists and support staff in Russia.
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