Ksenia Sobchak Dismisses Leaked Messages Appearing to Show Editorial Control
Russian media executive Ksenia Sobchak denies leaked private conversations that purportedly show her dictating coverage. Meduza analysis finds that editorial changes to her outlet's posts align with the leaked messages, questioning Sobchak's claim of fabrication.
On July 8, the hacker group Black Mirror and the anonymous VChK-OGPU project published screenshots of private conversations allegedly involving journalist and media executive Ksenia Sobchak. The first batch included exchanges with propagandist Kristina Potupchik, Moscow deputy chief Alexei Nemeryuk, Ostorozhno Novosti editor-in-chief Sergei Titov, and businesswoman Polina Deripaska.
Links to the screenshots appeared on Sobchak's own Telegram channels, where she commented she had nothing to be ashamed of. However, within minutes, her outlet Ostorozhno Novosti stated the channels had been hacked. Hours later, Sobchak regained access and told independent outlet Agentstvo the correspondence was fabricated.
On July 9, hackers released a second batch including exchanges with Andriy Yermak, Sergei Novikov, and Vladimir Tabak. Sobchak did not comment on that leak.
The screenshots show Sobchak intervening in editorial decisions. For example, she berated Titov over fuel crisis coverage and imposed a 50,000 ruble fine for unapproved posts about the state messenger MAX, which she called their main advertiser. In another exchange, she sought permission from censor Novikov for a music festival but was refused.
Meduza contacted Sobchak, who criticized the outlet for publishing without first asking for her comment. She also sent an "exclusive" screenshot of a message from "Putin" suggesting fakes could be tied to corrected publications.
Agentstvo analyzed the screen shots against actual post edits. They found that a May post about a protest in Voronezh was edited after Sobchak complained about MAX mentions, and a July post about the NS/WP verdict was updated to include the plot against Sobchak, matching the leaked messages. This alignment casts doubt on Sobchak's denial, according to Meduza.
