Featured Image Credit: Channel One
Topics: Russia, Ukraine, Film and TV, Viral
Emily Brown
The whereabouts of a Russian journalist remain unknown after she interrupted a live broadcast to protest the war in Ukraine.
Screenshots of Marina Ovsyannikova went viral after she appeared on the set of Russia's state TV Channel One to claim Russia was 'lying' to its residents about the ongoing conflict across the border.
The broadcast switched to a pre-recorded show after she interrupted the live show, but members of the public still had a couple of seconds to read the sign which said (translated): 'NO WAR. Stop the war. Don't believe propaganda. They are lying to you here'.
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One of Ovsyannikova's lawyers, Danill Berman, explained that they expected the journalist to be held initially for 15 days on an administrative charge before facing arrest on a criminal accusation with a more serious custodial sentence.
However, concerns have been raised about her whereabouts, with another of Ovsyannikova's lawyers, Pavel Chikov, sharing a post on Twitter after she appeared on TV to say he was searching for his client.
He wrote: 'Marina Ovsyannikova has not yet been found. She has been imprisoned for more than 12 hours. The pre-investigation check does not provide grounds for detention and imprisonment.'
Ovsyannikova was reportedly initially held for three hours in the duty room at the channel’s Ostankino television centre headquarters in Moscow.
'They want to scare her a lot', Berman said.
The journalist's actions were praised later in the evening by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who acknowledged her efforts at making Russians aware of the scale of the conflict.
He said he was 'grateful' to Russians who 'do not stop trying to convey the truth' and those who 'fight disinformation and tell the truth, real facts to their friends and loved ones'.
Zelenskyy went on to identify the journalist in particular, saying: 'And personally to the woman who entered the studio of Channel One with a poster against the war.'
Ekaterina Andreeva, the journalist who was presenting the news at the time of Ovsyannikova's protest, said she was unfazed by the interruption, saying: 'Whatever happens, stand like a rock. Where do I get my stamina? Today I needed it. From yoga. From Tai chi. From the heart. Stand like a rock.'
As well as the praise from Ukraine's president, Ovsyannikova has been celebrated for her actions by social media users across the globe.
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