The shameful capitulation of the US

by Nate Ostiller

• 4 min read

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OC Insider

Decolonising the North Caucasus, one language at a time

by Dominik K Cagara

•2 min read

Хьоме дешархо (Dear Reader), Much has already been said about the likely closure of RFE/RL and the consequences it will have for the region. However, there is one crucial aspect that I believe deserves more attention: RFE/RL’s decolonial impact. I have been passionate about the languages of the Caucasus for years, and happen to have been studying Chechen since 2009. Chechen is a complex language and it isn’t similar to any other language that I know. Each noun belongs to one of six genders, w

OC Insider

What freedom of speech means in the North Caucasus

by Elizaveta Chukharova

•2 min read

Dear reader, You have the opportunity to read this newsletter, as well as the freedom to read any news in Telegram or use it to communicate with friends. But in the North Caucasus, the use of the social media messenger Telegram is already a luxury. Since November, residents of Ingushetia, Chechnya, and Daghestan have reported problems accessing the messaging app. The authorities, without blinking an eye, replied that any issues were the work of ‘foreign agents’, accusing such ‘agents’ of makin

OC Insider

Independent media is just one step away from disappearing

by Aytan Farhadova

•1 min read

A few days ago, the chair of a regional media outlet called me with the following message: ‘Aytan, our employees in Azerbaijan refuse to work with us for fear of being arrested. For their own safety, they say they’d prefer to change their profession altogether, and we need new employees.’ In my country, almost every day begins with bad news, so this update did not shock me. But then, I heard that the media outlet itself was at risk, due to the situation in Georgia and the new FARA law in parl

OC Insider

Hey, Trump! Game on.

by Dominik K Cagara

•2 min read

Dear reader, Trump, Orbán, and Putin’s war on the media has entered a new era. When they failed to destroy us with their big lies, accusations in the mirror, or false balances, they struck where we are most vulnerable — our near-total dependency on philanthropy. My favourite part of founding OC Media was feeling connected to all the brave, uncompromising journalists in the Caucasus. I loved brainstorming stories with our Daghestani journalists, refining conflict-sensitive terminology, or trave