How Exiled Russian and Belarusian Journalists Continue Reporting Under Threat
Journalists from Russia and Belarus who have been forced into exile are finding alternative ways to report on their home countries despite facing criminal charges, surveillance, and severe censorship from the regimes they left behind.
Alina Koushyk, the editor-in-chief of Belsat—a TV station founded in Poland in 2007 to broadcast independent news to Belarus—has been labelled a "terrorist" and an "extremist" by the regime of Alexander Lukashenka. Moscow has also added her to its wanted list. "I'm not a terrorist, I'm just a journalist," Koushyk told Euronews. "For many years, I've been working just to say the truth, an alternative point of view. And this is not a crime."
A dozen journalists working for Belsat have been imprisoned in Belarus, though the regime released most of them last year. In March, Minsk released 250 political prisoners, including Belsat TV journalist Katsyaryna Andreeva, in a deal brokered by the United States in exchange for US sanctions relief. However, former Belsat employee Ihar Ilyash and other prominent Belarusian journalists, such as Denis Ivashin, remain imprisoned.
Navigating Exile and Legal Threats
Russian opponent and YouTuber Maxim Katz left Russia three days before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 to record a documentary series on World War II in London. Realising he could not return due to Moscow's impending crackdown on dissent, Katz relocated to Israel with his family. "This gives me an opportunity to feel free about what I am doing," he said.
Following the invasion, Moscow introduced war censorship laws banning the use of the word "war" instead of "special military operation," with violators facing up to 15 years in prison. Russian authorities designated Katz a "foreign agent" and a "wanted person," later sentencing him in absentia to eight years in prison.
While Koushyk feels safe in Europe, she remains highly vigilant about physical and digital security. "Belarusian and Russian secret services are working here. There are agents, there are spies, and this is not a cinema. This is our reality," she said, emphasizing the necessity of cybersecurity and media literacy.
Bypassing Censorship From Abroad
Reporting on Belarus from exile presents significant logistical hurdles. Koushyk cannot conduct street interviews or make phone calls to people inside the country, as doing so would lead to their immediate imprisonment. Instead, she monitors legal sources, official websites, Telegram channels, and TikTok, noting that ordinary citizens frequently share information about local events.
In 2021, Belarusian authorities designated Belsat as an "extremist" organisation—a label it also applied to Euronews in 2026. Employees and viewers of Belsat face up to seven years in prison. To bypass digital tracking, Koushyk highlights the importance of satellite networks. "Satellite is important, especially for Belarus, because if you watch satellite, you don't have digital threats. They cannot trace you," she explained.
To support independent broadcasting, Reporters Without Borders launched the Svoboda satellite in 2024 to transmit reliable Russian-language information to regions facing censorship. Belsat also utilizes YouTube and Instagram, which Koushyk notes can still be accessed in Belarus without a VPN.
For Katz, YouTube and Telegram are the most effective platforms to reach audiences in Russia. Although Russian authorities blocked YouTube in February, users continue to access it via VPNs. Katz's channel reaches approximately one million people daily, a figure he says is comparable to some Russian television channels.
Deconstructing State Propaganda
To counter state propaganda, Koushyk advocates for factual reporting and presenting alternative perspectives rather than engaging in ideological arguments. "I don't believe that you have to say that they are wrong and we are right," she said. She views her work as a broader mission to promote Belarusian culture and language, which she believes makes society more resilient to Russian propaganda.
Katz emphasizes the need to adapt language to connect with ordinary citizens inside Russia by focusing on daily life and local issues. "If you want to talk with the Russian audience, you should talk as you would talk in a kitchen in St. Petersburg and not at a protest action in Riga," he said.
Both journalists hope to return home in the future. Katz hopes a future Russian government will be pro-European, though he fears the military actions in Ukraine will delay Russia's reintegration into Europe. Koushyk remains confident about returning to Belarus, stating, "Everything we are doing is [aimed for us] to be back to our country."
