Condé Nast Shuts Down Vogue Russia, Other Publications About Ukraine War

Condé Nast will stop publishing Vogue Russia and its other products in the country – a move taken in response to what the media giant’s top boss has described as the Kremlin’s “senseless war” and the implementation of tough censorship laws.

Chief Executive Roger Lynch announced the decision in a memo to employees, noting that the company had terminated its franchise deal with Condé Nast Russia in response to the conflict.

“When Putin started this senseless war, we knew we had to take immediate action to protect our employees and our journalism, and we decided to end our publishing operations in Russia,” Lynch said, citing Condé Nast’s original decision to deny Cease operations on March 9th.

“As the war raged on, the tightening of censorship laws, which severely curtailed free speech and punished reporters only for doing their jobs, made our work in Russia untenable,” he added.

The decision to permanently cease operations affects seven Condé Nast publications in Russia – Vogue, GQ, GQ Style, Tatler, Glamour, Glamor Style Book and Architectural Digest. The company has been active in Russia since 1998.

Vogue Russia was the most popular Condé Nast magazine in the country with more than 800,000 readers, according to the company’s website.

Vogue Russia broke the news to her followers on Instagram, noting that, according to a translation of the note, “all types of broadcasts on our platforms will be suspended until further notice.”

In his memo, Lunch said the company would retain about 10% of its Russia-based employees “to meet certain outstanding obligations.” The laid-off employees receive severance pay and other benefits.

“Although we have had a successful business in Russia for over 20 years, the ongoing atrocities caused by this unprovoked war and associated censorship laws have made it impossible for us to continue operating there,” he added.

The Kremlin has cracked down on the media since the invasion of Ukraine began, implementing a law allowing Russian authorities to ban journalists determined to have published “fake news” criticizing the Russian government or military , subject to fines or imprisonment.

This law prompted several international media outlets to limit or shut down their activities in Russia, citing unsustainable and potentially dangerous conditions for their employees.

Russia stepped up its crackdown on Thursday, sanctioning several American and Canadian journalists.

Condé Nast joins hundreds of companies that have severed ties with Russia in response to the invasion.