Sonya Groysman
Sonya Groysman | |
|---|---|
Соня Гройсман | |
 Groysman in 2019 | |
| Born | 13 April 1995 |
| Alma mater | Moscow State University |
| Occupation | Journalist |
| Employer(s) | Proekt TV Rain |
| Awards | Redkollegia (2021, 2023) |
Sonya Romanovna Groysman (Russian: Соня Романовна Гройсман; born 13 April 1995) is a Russian journalist. After working for independent media outlets including Proekt and TV Rain, Groysman was among the first Russian journalists to be labelled as a foreign agent by the Russian government, severely impacting her ability to work in Russia. Following this, she created the podcast Hello, You're a Foreign Agent, alongside fellow journalist Olga Churakova, detailing their experiences.[1][2]
Early life and education
[edit]Groysman was born on 13 April 1995 in Novosibirsk, Novosibirsk Oblast. She studied journalism at Moscow State University.[3]
Journalism career
[edit]After graduating, Groysman worked for the independent media outlets Proekt and TV Rain, where she focused on directing video documentaries.[1]
On 15 July 2021, Russian authorities formally banned Proekt as an "undesirable organisation", and classified several of its journalists, including Groysman, as being "foreign agents". Following this, she and Olga Churakova, a fellow journalist deemed to be a foreign agent, started the podcast Hello, You're a Foreign Agent (Russian: Привет, ты иноагент, romanized: Privet, ty inoagent), in which they documented how being labelled foreign agents had impacted their daily lives and careers.[4][5][6] Groysman later challenged her designation in court, though the judge refused to remove her status.[3] On 21 August, Groysman was arrested while participating in a solo picket of the Federal Security Service building in Moscow against the banning of Proekt and iStories, another independent news outlet. Groysman recorded the arrest and later used its footage and audio in an episode of Hello, You're a Foreign Agent.[2][6][7]
In 2022, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the subsequent closure of TV Rain on 1 March, Groysman left Russia for Turkey.[6][8]
In 2023, Hello, You're a Foreign Agent aired a special series entitled "Sisters" (Russian: Сёстры, romanized: Syostry), featuring eight episodes focused on Russian women who were against the Russo-Ukrainian war whose brothers had been deployed to the frontline. This led to the podcast being recognised as one of the best podcasts of 2023 by Meduza and won Groysman and Churakova a Redkollegia; they had previously won the award in 2021 for an episode about the Russian Wikipedia.[1][4][9]
Hello, You're a Foreign Agent was banned from Russia-based podcast plaforms such as Yandex Music. In 2023, Roskomnadzor banned the podcast after concluding that the "Sisters" series included "unrealiable information" that was "destabilising the socio-political situation".[4][10] In May 2024, Groysman was charged after failing to declare her status as a foreign agent at the beginning of an episode of Hello, You're a Foreign Agent.[11]
Recognition
[edit]In 2022, Groysman was nominated for the Index on Censorship's Freedom of Expression Award. In 2024, Groysman was part of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism's Class of 2024.[1]
In 2024, Groysman was featured in the documentary My Undesirable Friends: Part I — Last Air in Moscow.[8]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 "Class of 2024". Nieman Foundation for Journalism. Archived from the original on 2026-01-23. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- 1 2 Smith, Ben (2021-08-22). "Russian Journalists Meet a Crackdown With Dark Humor, and Subscribers". The New York Times. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - 1 2 "«Я живой пример абсурдности закона»: речь журналистки Сони Гройсман на суде по статусу «иноагента»". TV Rain (in Russian). 2021-11-24. Archived from the original on 2025-09-05. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- 1 2 3 Nikitenko, Iana (2025). "Their Brothers Went to War: A Review of the Russian Anti-War Podcast Sisters". RadioDoc Review. 10 (1). Archived from the original on 2026-02-09. Retrieved 2026-04-11 – via University of Wollongong.
- ↑ Horton, Adrian (2025-08-15). "'Kept fighting despite the odds': the Russian journalists who risked everything to report the truth". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2025-12-10. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- 1 2 3 "Nominees for the 2022 Freedom of Expression Awards - Journalism". Index on Censorship. 2022-05-16. Archived from the original on 2026-02-19. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- ↑ Sadikov, Alexander (2021-09-11). "«Я думала, личное „иноагентство" — это то, что бывает с другими» Интервью журналисток Сони Гройсман и Ольги Чураковой. Они живут в статусе «иностранных агентов» — и делают об этом подкаст". Meduza (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2026-02-12. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- 1 2 "Lights, Camera, Action: Niemans Making Films". Nieman Foundation for Journalism. 2026-01-28. Archived from the original on 2026-02-17. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- ↑ Groysman, Sonya (2025-12-10). "«Он написал: „Дай телефон мамы, я потерял". А в следующем сообщении: „Я на СВО ухожу"» . Журналистка Рита Логинова сделала подкаст о своем брате, пропавшем без вести на войне, — и о том, почему винит в этом российскую наркополитику. Вот ее интервью". Meduza (in Russian). Archived from the original on 2026-03-11. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- ↑ "Роскомнадзор заблокировал подкаст про иноагентов и семьи воюющих в Украине". Radio Svoboda (in Russian). 2023-10-28. Archived from the original on 2025-08-13. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
- ↑ "На Катерину Гордееву и Соню Гройсман составили проколы по «иноагентскому» законодательству". Mass Media Defence Centre (in Russian). 2024-03-14. Archived from the original on 2025-12-10. Retrieved 2026-04-11.