The reporter Evan Gershkovich’s release from a Russian prison on Thursday was celebrated across US and western media but perhaps most happily by journalists in his own newsroom, at the Wall Street Journal in New York.
In an email to staff, Emma Tucker, the Journal editor-in-chief, said: “A few moments ago, Evan walked free from a Russian plane. He will shortly be on a flight back to the US.
“I cannot even begin to describe the immense happiness and relief that this news brings and I know all of you will feel the same. This is a day of great joy for Evan and his family, and a historic day for the Wall Street Journal.
“The strength, determination and resilience that Evan, his parents and his sister maintained throughout this long ordeal have been incredible. They have been an inspiration to all of us in the newsroom, to colleagues across the company and to supporters who have campaigned so hard for his release.”
After Gershkovich was arrested and accused of espionage, in late March 2023, the Journal mounted a high-profile campaign to stress his innocence, ensure he was not forgotten and press for his release.
Speaking to the New York Times earlier this year, Tucker said: “After an initial flurry of attention in the weeks following Evan’s arrest, keeping the spotlight on his ordeal became a huge challenge for the newsroom amid jam-packed news cycles.
“We used every grim milestone as a moment to organise publicity and get Evan back into the headlines: 100 days, his birthday in October, 250 days, every one of his court appearances.”
In court in Moscow earlier this month, Gershkovich was sentenced to 16 years in a high-security penal colony. In response, Tucker and Almar Latour, chief executive of Dow Jones and publisher of the Journal, issued a joint statement.
“This disgraceful, sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from reporting, all for doing his job as a journalist.
“We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evan’s release and to support his family. Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until he’s released. This must end now.”
Thirteen days later, thanks to a US-led, international effort, it ended.
As the good news spread, a dedicated page on the Journal website still hosted a counter showing time elapsed since Gershkovich was arrested. It stood at 491 days, minutes ticking forward, towards 492.
At the top of the front page, headings read: “Evan Gershkovich, Wrongfully Convicted, Sentenced to 16 Years, A Stolen Year, His Family Reflects, A Timeline, His Reporting, How You Can Help, Write a Message, Latest News and Get Email Updates.”
When the paper launched its report on the release deal, Annie Linskey, a Journal reporter, said: “Applause breaks out in WSJ’s DC office, as editors here get confirmation that Evan Gershkovich is off a Russian plane.”
In her email to staff, which was reported by the Times, Tucker said the paper was “happy too for the other Americans released today who will soon be reunited with their families.
“We have a plan in place to ensure Evan is well looked after. We want him to take as much time as he needs to recuperate privately and are doing everything we can to support him and his family. I will be travelling later today to meet him when he lands in Texas. For those of you here in [the Journal newsroom in New York City], let’s gather now … to share the enormous relief and deep joy that our friend and colleague is free, and on his way back home.”
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The Journal’s story about Gershkovich’s release and the prisoner swap deal described some effects of the paper’s campaign to keep their reporter’s case in the public eye.
It said: “Gershkovich’s court appearances – during which he was often photographed smiling – became front-page news across America and Europe. Well-wishers raised banners at Major League Baseball games and Premier League soccer matches, calling for his release.
“Journalists and celebrity news presenters from Carlson to CNN anchor Jake Tapper spoke out on his behalf.
“Supporters received upbeat and joke-filled letters from Gershkovich, written in his nine-by-12-ft cell at Moscow’s infamous Lefortovo prison, where Soviet interrogators once tortured and murdered alleged ‘class enemies’.”
Poignantly, the Journal also noted a prisoner who was not set free on Thursday.
“Marc Fogel, a history teacher at the high school where US Moscow embassy staff sent their children … is serving 14 years in a penal colony. He was arrested in 2021 for carrying less than an ounce of medical marijuana. He said he had intended to use the drug for medical purposes to treat chronic pain.
“The US has sought to free him on ‘humanitarian grounds’.”
Media organisations welcomed the release of Gershkovich and also Alsu Kurmasheva, a Russian-American journalist for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty who was sentenced on the same day as Gershkovich, to six and a half years for supposedly spreading “fake news” about the Russian army.
Jodie Ginsberg, chief executive of the Committee to Protect Journalists, said: “Evan and Alsu have been apart from their families for far too long.
“They were detained and sentenced on spurious charges intended to punish them for their journalism and stifle independent reporting. Their reported release is welcome – but it does not change the fact that Russia continues to suppress a free press.
“Moscow needs to release all jailed journalists and end its campaign of using in absentia arrest warrants and sentences against exiled Russian journalists.”