The journalist who interviewed the head of Putin’s mercenaries was kicked out of his media: Prigozhin’s warning

The founder of the private mercenary group Wagner, Yevgeny Prigozhin, poses with mercenaries “Biber” and “Dolik” during a statement on the start of the withdrawal of his forces from Bakhmut and the handing over of their positions to Russian regular troops, in the course of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in Bakhmut, Ukraine, in this still image taken from a video released on May 25, 2023 (Reuters)

A pro-Kremlin blogger and political operative denounced on Thursday that he was fired from an online media outlet after publishing an interview in which the head of the Wagner mercenary group warned of a possible revolution in Russia and claimed that Moscow’s war in Ukraine had failed.

The blogger, Konstantin Dolgov, worked for the Telega Online video project, which broadcasts pro-Russian news and political debates live on Rutube, a video hosting website. The Russian government tries to promote the site as an alternative to what it sees as “unfriendly” YouTube. YouTube is one of the few Western social media platforms still available in Russia.

On Tuesday, Dolgov posted a lengthy interview with Yevgeniy Prigozhin on his Telegram channel. Wagner’s boss launched into a harsher than usual tirade about Russia’s failures in the war, even calling the senior officers of the regular army incompetent.

Prigozhin also criticized the detachment of Russia’s wealthy elite, accusing it of not committing enough to President Vladimir Putin’s brutal onslaught in Ukraine. She said anger against the rich could lead to a popular uprising similar to the 1917 Russian Revolution.

The interview was seen as an attempt by Prigozhin to use his recent victory in the capture of the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut, where his mercenaries were a crucial fighting force, to improve his internal position. Prigozhin has been locked in a bitter personal battle with regular military chiefs, including Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu.

Yevgeny Prigozhin speaks with Wagner fighters during the conflict between Russia and Ukraine in Bakhmut, Ukraine, on May 25, 2023 (Reuters)

Dolgov posted a video on the Telega Online blog in which he said that he had been fired for the interview. The clip was quickly removed from the channel.

“The interview was published on Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning I was told I was fired,” Dolgov wrote on his blog. “Whoever made the call was probably upset by Prigozhin’s statements, but they can’t do anything to him, so they decided to take it out on the interviewer and fire me. [a mí] from everywhere”.

Dolgov claimed that the Telega Online project was sponsored by the Internet Development Institute, or IRI, a Kremlin project that produces online propaganda and states that its mission is to “help dialogue between industry, state and society.”

The IRI is led by Alexei Goreslavky, a pro-Kremlin journalist and media manager known for dismantling a highly influential independent website, lenta.ru, in 2014. That move was a precursor to a broader Kremlin crackdown on the media, which in 2023 left the country with virtually no independent media available to ordinary Russians.

IRI did not comment on Prigozhin’s situation or claim ownership of the project, but Dolgov has attended IRI-organized events and awards ceremonies.

Dolgov, in his statement, stated that there is “freedom of expression in Russia, thank God and the President.”

“I do not think that Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin] be happy to learn that the Telega Online presenter was fired for an interview with… the hero of the Russian Federation,” Dolgov said, referring to the medal awarded by the state to Prigozhin for his contribution to the war in Ukraine.

Dolgov’s employer denied that he had been fired, saying he had planned to leave “long before the interview with Prigozhin.”

“We understand that hype always hits the audience better than any balanced stance…but the ‘firing’ of our respected Konstantin [Dolgov] It was not at all as spontaneous as he claims,” Telega Online stated in a statement. He accused Dolgov of promoting himself at the expense of the video show. Dolgov called that claim a lie.

The internal dispute sheds light on a broader battle that Prigozhin and his affiliated media are waging as they find themselves in competition with the Russian Defense Ministry for influence and a role in the Ukraine war. Prigozhin has repeatedly complained that federally controlled television channels have stopped covering him and the Wagner Group, a departure from fawning reports last year praising the military prowess of mercenaries.

Prigozhin warned against anyone trying to silence him.

“Of course, I will support Dolgov, but try to silence me and we will see how you succeed,” Prigozhin said in an audio recording shared by his press service on Thursday. “You are idiots if you think you are doing the authorities a service. You are actually doing them a disservice. There is a war going on and you should be thinking about how to save the country.”

And he added: “So the degenerate owners of this Telegram channel, you will burn in hell.”

---

Source

---