A new documentary chronicles what it was like working at one of the last bastions of independent journalism in Russia, describing the disintegrating situation in Russia as increasingly draconian regulations on free speech are enacted during the lead up to the brutal invasion of Ukraine.
Stephen Hill talked to the director Julia Loktev about her film “My Undesirable Friends, Last Air in Moscow” about RainTV, a broadcast station that was willing to speak truth to power despite the many legal obstacles put in its way.
Image: Rain TV reporter Ksenia Mironova preparing a news program
Produced By: Stephen Hill
Featured In Story: Julia Loktev, director of “My Undesirable Friends, Part 1: Last Air in Moscow”
First aired on The Wire, Wednesday 11 February 2026