Russia has become one of the most challenging places in the world to be a journalist, where reporters face threats of intimidation, expulsion and imprisonment. BBC Panorama has followed a year in the life of the BBC’s Russia editor, Steve Rosenberg, as he tries to walk the tightrope during a time of geopolitical upheaval.
He is confronted by police, suspected spies pop up and local TV crews doorstep him – all while doing his job as a reporter. Steve also reflects on how Russia has changed in the more than 30 years he has been living there.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall, he hosted the country’s Eurovision Song Contest, but now he is mocked on national television, with one pundit describing him as an enemy of the state.
