Readovka
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 | |
| Type | News website |
|---|---|
| Founder(s) | Alexey Kostylev |
| Editor-in-chief | Alexey Kostylev |
| Founded | 2014 |
| Language | Russian |
| Headquarters | Roslavl Smolensk Oblast, Russia |
| Sister newspapers | Ready, Glavnoye v gorode, Readovka67 |
| Website | readovka |
Readovka is a Russian online news resource, founded in 2011 in Smolensk as a public page on VKontakte. In 2014, its owner created the Readovka website, which at that time specialised in regional news. In 2017 it started to cover events in Russia and internationally. The Readovka media holding includes the "Ready" communication agency, as well as a group of regional projects united by the "Main in the City" brand.[1]
In 2011 Alexey Kostylev created a public page on VKontakte, "Important in Smolensk", about the city. In 2014, Kostylev set up the Readovka website, focussing on events in the Smolensk Oblast region. The name "Readovka" comes from Readovsky Park in Smolensk and from the English word "read".[2] On 9 February 2017, it was registered as an online news resource.[3]
In 2017 Kostylev tried to move the editorial office from Smolensk to Moscow; this failed, but Kostylev separated the editorial offices with a separate division in the capital. In November 2020, the head office was moved to Moscow.[1] At the same time, the company started publishing Readovka67, with news about events in Smolensk and the Smolensk Oblast.[4] The media holding also owns the Readovka.by publication about Vitebsk (Belarus), the Ready PR agency and the Readovka.space website.
In 2022, a division was launched to develop a network of local projects united by the Main in the City brand. As of June 2022, platforms have been set up in cities including Sochi, Donetsk, and Kherson. The main platform of the Readovka publication is the Telegram channel of the same name, founded in 2018. In March 2022 the Readovka team set up a Telegram channel "Readovka Explains", where staff briefly answer questions about current events, including in Ukraine and internationally in connection with the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. In April 2022, the publication crossed the mark of one million subscribers, and, according to the Tgstat service, is one of the five most cited media in the country.[5]
According to the Polish TV channel Belsat TV, in March 2022, some of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s employees became employees of Readovka.[6]
A number of Russian opposition and some Western publications classify Readovka as a pro-Kremlin resource.[7][8] However, Kostylev denies this, stating that Readovka "remains in line with independent journalism".[citation needed]
In the aftermath of the Crocus City Hall attack, Readovka was one of the Russian media outlets that began sending the message that "not all Tajiks are terrorists" and "disturbing the interethnic harmony in Russia and making us hate each other is the goal of our real enemies, Ukraine and the West". However, many Russian nationalists accused Readovka of becoming a "Tajik media outlet".[9]