German media giant Axel Springer announced on Monday it had hired Marina Ovsyannikova, a former video editor for Russia’s Channel One. She gained celebrity in the West after staging a protest, during a live broadcast, against the Russian attack on Ukraine.
Ovsyannikova, 43, will be reporting as a freelance journalist for the TV channel Welt, which is owned by Axel Springer, the publishing house said. Her coverage will include Ukraine and Russia, according to the statement.
“At a crucial moment, Marina Ovsyannikova had the courage to confront Russian viewers with an unembellished view of reality. In doing so, she defended the most important journalistic ethics – despite the threat of state repression. I am excited to be working with her,” Ulf Poschardt, editor-in-chief of WELT Group, said.
She already made her first contribution, a column published on the channel’s website. Headlined “the Russians are afraid,” it is focused on her person, her reaction to the violence in Ukraine and harassment that she has allegedly received online from Russians and Ukrainians alike, because “nobody wants to believe that it was a citizen’s emotional protest” when she staged her live demonstration.