View source for NEWSru

{{Short description|Former Russian news website}}
{{Distinguish|news.ru{{!}}NEWS.ru}}<!-- NOTE: This is a red link at present, but given the similarity with the NEWSru.com site it appears to be important to distinguish the two sites. -->
{{Infobox website
| name           = NEWSru.com
| logo           = [[File:NEWSru logo 1.png|260px]][[File:NEWSru Israel logo.png|260px]][[File:NEWSru Ukraine logo.png|260px]]
| screenshot     =
| caption        =
| url            = [http://newsru.com newsru.com]<br/>[http://www.newsru.co.il newsru.co.il]<br/>[http://www.newsru.ua newsru.ua]
| commercial     = Yes
| type           = [[News site]]
| language       = [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]]
| registration   = Free/Subscription
| owner          = [[Vladimir Gusinsky]]
| author         =
| launch_date    = August 28, 2000
| current_status = Russian branch is inactive from May 31, 2021 (news archive publicly available), Ukrainian branch inactive since 2017, Israeli branch active
| revenue        =
}}
'''NEWSru.com''' was a Russian independent [[online news]] site based in Moscow that was generally critical of the Russian government. Launched by Russian internet pioneer [[Anton Nossik]] in 2000, it closed in 2021 after experiencing difficulties attracting advertisers due to the site's editorial positions.
==History==
[[File:Пустой офис NEWSru.com.jpg|thumb|Empty office of NEWSru.com]]
NEWSru launched by Russian internet pioneer [[Anton Nossik]] on August, 28, 2000, with the domain name ntu.ru<ref name="Reuters" /><ref name="MoscowTimes" /> Yelena Bereznitskaya-Bruni replaced the initial Editor in Chief Igor Barchugov in 2001.<ref>{{Cite web|last=www.omnesmedia.com|title=News RU|url=https://www.omnesmedia.com/en/company/news-ru|access-date=2020-09-03|website=www.omnesmedia.com|language=en-US}}</ref>
In 2002, the state-run OAO [[Gazprom Media]] took over [[NTV (Russia)|NTV]],<ref>{{cite web|first=Natalia|last=Khaitina|url=http://www.netoscope.ru/news/2001/04/16/2074.html|title=NTV and NTV.ru — two big differences|publisher=Netoscope|language=ru|date=2001-04-16|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060105155754/http://www.netoscope.ru/news/2001/04/16/2074.html/|archive-date=2006-01-05}} [http://netoscope.narod.ru/news/2001/04/16/2074.html Alt URL]</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Natalia|last=Khaitina|url=http://www.netoscope.ru/theme/2001/04/19/2095.html|title=NTV.ru left Ostankino|publisher=Netoscope|language=ru|date=2001-04-19|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120723084050/http://netoscope.ru/theme/2001/04/19/2095.html|archive-date=2012-07-23|url-status=dead}}</ref> and NEWSru remained part of the media empire of former NTV owner and oligarch [[Vladimir Gusinsky]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.netoscope.ru/press-releases/27.html|title=NTV.ru server revealed|publisher=Netoscope|language=ru|date=2000-08-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928060502/http://www.netoscope.ru/press-releases/27.html|archive-date=2007-09-28}} [http://netoscope.narod.ru/press-releases/27.html Alt URL]</ref><ref>{{cite web|first=Natalia|last=Khaitina|url=http://www.netoscope.ru/news/2000/08/28/147.html|title=NTV.ru site opened before the target date|publisher=Netoscope|language=ru|date=2000-08-28|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928060633/http://www.netoscope.ru/news/2000/08/28/147.html|archive-date=2007-09-28}} [http://netoscope.narod.ru/news/2000/08/28/147.html Alt URL]</ref> The takeover was seen as a turning point in media freedom in post-Soviet Russia.<ref name="MoscowTimes" />
In 2009, Russian journalist Maria Yulikova described NEWSru as one of the leading independent news sources in Russia.<ref name="my media">{{cite journal|first=Maria|last=Yulikova|title=My Media|journal=[[Index on Censorship]]|volume= 37|issue=1|date=February 2008|pages=179–182 |doi=10.1080/03064220701882772|url=http://www.carnegie.ru/en/pubs/media/77876.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090901152357/http://www.carnegie.ru/en/pubs/media/77876.htm|archive-date=2009-09-01|doi-access=free}}</ref>
The site primarily operated as a news aggregator.<ref name="Reuters">{{cite news |title=Russia's Newsru media outlet announces closure, blames political situation |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/russia-media-newsru-idUSL5N2NI155/ |access-date=20 November 2023 |work=Reuters |date=2021-05-31}}</ref>
In May 2021, the site announced it would close for "economic reasons" due to a difficulty with attracting advertisers because the site did not follow the editorial line of pro-Kremlin state media.<ref name="Reuters" /> Editor-in-Chief Yelena Bereznitskaya said "In the current situation, we realized that we won’t find funding in the near future for what we love and know how to do — objective news." The site's staff planned to continue to focus on newsru.co.il, its Russian-language Israeli offshoot.<ref name="MoscowTimes">{{cite news |title=Russia's Newsru.com News Site Shuts Down After 21 Years |url=https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2021/05/31/russias-newsrucom-news-site-shuts-down-after-21-years-a74057 |access-date=20 November 2023 |work=[[Moscow Times]] |date=2021-05-31}}</ref>
== Headquarters and team ==
NEWSru was based in Moscow, but its editorial team and location were kept secret. The network had two foreign editions: a website in [[Israel]] started in December 2005 (newsru.co.il), and a Ukrainian edition based in Kyiv, which was discontinued in March 2017.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|title=newsru.com|url=https://www.eurotopics.net/en/191958/newsru-com|access-date=2020-09-02|website=eurotopics.net|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://day.kyiv.ua/ru/article/media/populyarnyy-portal-newsruua-zakrylsya|title=Популярный портал NEWSru.ua закрылся &#124; Газета «День»}}</ref>
Chief editor Olga Leni admitted that the Ukrainian publication had been subsidized for the entire 10 years of its existence, and the site had never been self-supporting. Other former employees agreed that the site was closed due to a pro-Ukrainian pronouncement on the conflict in Donbas.<ref name=":1" />
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* {{Commonscatinline}}
* [http://www.newsru.com NEWSru.com] (now only archive) {{in lang|ru}}
* [http://www.newsru.co.il NEWSru.co.il] {{in lang|ru}}
[[Category:News agencies based in Russia]]
[[Category:Defunct websites]]
[[Category:Russian news websites]]
[[Category:Ukrainian news websites]]
[[Category:Internet properties established in 2000]]
[[Category:Israeli news websites]]
[[Category:Internet properties disestablished in 2021]]
[[Category:Vladimir Gusinsky]]