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The Insider’s investigative journalist Anastasia Mikhaylova has been found guilty of an administrative offense in Moscow for her involvement in an organization deemed “undesirable” by the Russian authorities, according to a report by the independent outlet Mediazona. She was fined 10,000 rubles (approximately $120), though the ruling has not yet taken effect and an appeal has been submitted, according to her lawyer Maksim Olenichev, who works with the human rights project Department One (Perviy Otdel).
The alleged “offense” is Mikhaylova’s first. A repeat offense would give the state the grounds to launch a criminal investigation, which could potentially result in a prison term.
The case against Mikhaylova stems from a video published on The Insider’s YouTube channel in April 2024, covering the trial of former Kazakh government minister Kuandyk Bishimbayev, who was then accused — and later found guilty — of murdering his wife, Saltanat Nukenova. Despite the video being over a year old, proceedings were only launched in January 2025, according to the court ruling.
Mikhaylova was charged alongside multiple other journalists and public figures — TV Rain’s Tikhon Dzyadko and Mikhail Fishman, former Novaya Gazeta reporter-turned-blogger Pavel Kanygin, and political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin.
The Insider was labeled a “foreign agent” in July 2021 and was subsequently banned as an “undesirable organization” in July 2022. Under Russian law, association with such organizations can lead to criminal prosecution. The Prosecutor General’s Office claims The Insider “poses a threat to the constitutional order and security of the Russian Federation.”
English translations of Anastasia Mikhaylova's investigations can be found on The Insider’s website via the following link.
Russia recently launched a criminal investigation into another of The Insider’s journalists, Sergei Ezhov, for his alleged non-compliance with obligations imposed on individuals designated as “foreign agents.” The Russian Interior Ministry has placed Ezhov on its wanted list, though the specific article of the Criminal Code under which he is charged has not yet been disclosed.
The criminal case against Ezhov was initiated on March 17, 2025 following a search of his parents’ apartment in Ryazan.
Tikhon Dzyadko and Mikhail Fishman are affiliated with the independent TV channel Dozhd (TV Rain), which Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office designated as an “undesirable organization” in July 2023. Dzyadko was labeled a “foreign agent” in October 2022, with Fishman receiving the same designation two months later.
Pavel Kanygin is a former journalist with Novaya Gazeta and currently leads the independent YouTube project To Be Continued, which has over one million subscribers. Kanygin was added to Russia’s foreign agent registry in April 2023, and the project’s website was blocked in Russia the following month.
Dmitry Oreshkin is a well-known expert on Russia’s electoral system. He regularly comments for Dozhd and other outlets labeled “undesirable” by the Russian state. Since summer 2023, Oreshkin has also been listed as a foreign agent.