The Naked Pravda

Meduza’s English-language podcast, The Naked Pravda highlights how our top reporting intersects with the wider research and expertise that exists about Russia. The broader context of Meduza’s in-depth, original journalism isn’t always clear, which is where this show comes in. Here you’ll hear from the world’s community of Russia experts, activists, and reporters about issues that are at the heart of Meduza’s stories and crucial to major events in and around Russia.

Recent Episodes
  • The banking scandal that broke Russia’s anti-Kremlin opposition
    Nov 9, 2024 – 00:34:28
  • Moldova’s knife-edge election and E.U. referendum
    Nov 2, 2024 – 00:36:42
  • How Russian propaganda and ordinary Americans build ‘bespoke realities’
    Oct 26, 2024 – 00:42:03
  • North Korea's role in the Ukraine War
    Oct 19, 2024 – 00:29:14
  • Breaking down Russia's 2025 war budget
    Oct 5, 2024 – 00:28:15
  • The North Caucasian clan warfare behind a deadly dispute at Wildberries, ‘Russia’s Amazon’
    Sep 29, 2024 – 00:25:45
  • America's expanding crackdown on RT and Moscow's covert influence operations
    Sep 18, 2024 – 00:45:26
  • Iranian ballistic missiles have entered the Ukraine War chat
    Sep 13, 2024 – 00:22:45
  • The science of Russian Internet censorship and surveillance
    Aug 24, 2024 – 00:34:57
  • Russian conscripts and Ukraine's Kursk offensive
    Aug 17, 2024 – 00:37:23
  • The long-term economic effects of Russia’s war in Ukraine
    Jun 15, 2024 – 00:39:49
  • How can Ukraine hold the line against Russia?
    Jun 8, 2024 – 00:30:40
  • Kazakhstan's landmark murder trial
    May 31, 2024 – 00:45:31
  •  ‘The American faith’: Why Russia targets evangelicals in Ukraine
    May 25, 2024 – 00:37:32
  • Corruption and co-optation in Russia’s autocracy
    May 18, 2024 – 00:28:39
  • How Russian disinformation really threatens the USA
    May 10, 2024 – 00:30:50
  • Returning to the talks that could have ended the war in Ukraine
    May 3, 2024 – 00:33:01
  • How Chechen dictator Ramzan Kadyrov dies
    Apr 27, 2024 – 00:26:29
  • Migration and discrimination in Putin’s Russia
    Apr 19, 2024 – 00:46:43
  • The evolution of the Russian FSB
    Apr 12, 2024 – 00:44:29
  • Daniel Roher and Julia Ioffe remember the Navalnys
    Apr 6, 2024 – 00:48:43
  • How terrorism’s geopolitics brought tragedy to Moscow
    Mar 31, 2024 – 00:48:11
  • Is Europe preparing for a wider Russian invasion?
    Mar 15, 2024 – 01:11:40
  • Politico’s Alex Ward on Biden’s Russia and Ukraine policy
    Mar 8, 2024 – 00:30:51
  • The Russian space nukes scare
    Mar 1, 2024 – 00:35:52
  • Christopher Miller on how war came to Ukraine
    Feb 24, 2024 – 00:37:37
  • The death of Alexey Navalny
    Feb 17, 2024 – 00:24:14
  • Yandex’s restructuring and the future of Kremlin tech control
    Feb 12, 2024 – 00:27:30
  • How Russia targets its critics abroad in wartime
    Feb 5, 2024 – 00:41:20
  • How doomed presidential candidate Boris Nadezhdin rallied antiwar Russians
    Jan 29, 2024 – 00:29:46
  • Why hasn’t the West seized Russia’s frozen sovereign assets?
    Jan 21, 2024 – 00:48:24
  • The evolution of Russia’s combat recruitment
    Jan 13, 2024 – 00:41:28
  • Memories of Russia
    Dec 29, 2023 – 00:31:41
  • Growing up German in Soviet Kazakhstan, with Lena Wolf
    Dec 22, 2023 – 00:37:05
  • How studying Russia became a paradox
    Dec 15, 2023 – 00:31:07
  • Russia’s ban on the ‘LGBT movement’
    Dec 8, 2023 – 00:49:23
  • Spotlight on Georgia
    Dec 2, 2023 – 00:47:34
  • How Russian comedians find the humor in exile
    Nov 20, 2023 – 00:44:14
  • How the USSR tried to run the world
    Nov 10, 2023 – 00:43:41
  • Why is anti-Semitic violence spreading in Russia’s North Caucasus?
    Nov 5, 2023 – 00:28:44
  • The Russian military’s ‘torture pits’
    Oct 28, 2023 – 00:19:09
  • Russian music at war
    Oct 21, 2023 – 00:57:35
  • How Russia pressures Central Asian migrants into military service
    Oct 13, 2023 – 00:34:07
  • ‘Economic War: Ukraine and the Global Conflict Between Russia and the West’
    Oct 8, 2023 – 00:42:22
  • Russian peacekeepers in Nagorno-Karabakh
    Sep 30, 2023 – 00:34:46
  • What’s behind Putin’s recent spate of anti-Semitic statements?
    Sep 22, 2023 – 00:27:33
  • The Pegasus spyware attack on Meduza
    Sep 16, 2023 – 00:48:48
  • Russian elections after an eternity under Putin
    Sep 9, 2023 – 00:45:24
  • Jade McGlynn’s ‘Russia’s War’
    Sep 1, 2023 – 00:28:24
  • The Kremlin’s new history textbook
    Aug 19, 2023 – 00:43:03
Recent Reviews
  • Shoeless Jack Johnson
    Where have you been ?
    Is this show discontinued?
  • ListenerAJL
    Meduza rocks
    An invaluable resource. My “go to” podcast for cutting edge reporting on Russia and it’s neighbors. This show deserves everyone’s support.
  • lmsw8
    Avid listener
    Interesting and so informative!
  • Clontarf64
    Great show
    Always good
  • Stephen_Grant1977
    Russian Propaganda
    This show is what I call “soft” Russian propaganda. Notice how the themes are centered around the “plight” of Russians living in Germany or Latvia or Lithuania. Listener beware.
  • gabfanatico
    Awesome!
    Great show and interesting topics. Thanks!
  • pataphysician
    Cheers!
    Truth; no trivial borscht here.
  • animundi
    English-speakers are grateful for this critical news
    Thank you for providing this in English! Americans and others need to know. Since funding is hard to come by now that Russian readers inside face jail, more than ever Meduza depends on those of us outside to support independent Russian news in this grotesque time.
  • Nytp
    Personable host, interesting stories & guests
    I’m sorry I only discovered this podcast and Meduza’s English language reporting this year. The podcast doesn’t shy away from academic guests, which I always appreciate when a host treats the audience as intelligent and able to, well, hear from academics with layers of dumbing down. It’s great to have a host fluent in Russian and very familiar with Russian culture. Good stuff. Thanks and please keep it going.
  • Lavadus
    Informative and engaging
    I particularly liked the episodes on Wagner and the Russian right-wing group
  • Hygdfgbxbnm
    One of my Favorites
    I absolutely love Kevin Rothrock and this Meduza podcast. I’d love to see the critics in the other comments host and produce this show; it’s not easy. He always brings attention to things that are going on in Russia that I’m not aware of. Thank you!
  • Y2856Y
    Poor Interview Skills
    I want to learn more about Russia and support Medusa against censorship, but the podcaster is a very difficult person to listen to. His questions meander and last an uncomfortable period of time. He needs to prepare short and very directed questions in advance. Also, he interrupts his interview subjects. I’ll try to keep listening but the podcast so far is difficult to tolerate. Sadly, this is style and not substance and it would be a shame if the style turns off so much we cannot benefit from the substance.
  • Fuboboy
    Super pod
    Extremely informative. Important topics. Thank you.
  • islanddart
    Uninformed
    In his questions and discussions, the host of the show betrays a remarkable ignorance of Russia. I don’t understand why exactly he was hired by Meduza. Is he even fluent in Russian? Some guests offer interesting insights, but the host himself offers nothing of value. Additionally, his partisanship is on full display when discussing matters that have a nexus to US domestic politics.
  • SAFE-T-
    Critical Truth
    Meduza is needing support. One of the most needed relentless organizations in the search for truth creates a podcast. To listen and review is free.
  • KatherineJordan93
    Thank you!
    I am so happy to listen to an independent Russian podcast that I can share with my English-speaking family and friends to keep them up-to-date on things that are going on in the world and especially in my home country. Thank you so much for that
  • Cheedana
    My favorite podcast 🎧🎶
    Just thank you! I love your podcast❤️
  • Rousse
    Independent view of modern Russia
    Interesting, open-minded, approachable. Gives non-Russians a good glimpse at what modern life in Russia is like, warts and all.
  • Sampson 1917
    Hit or Miss
    The show quality really depends on the guests. Sometimes guest who are experts in one field are invited to discuss a separate field, in which they are not experts, leading to poor quality shows. Also, the host’s knowledge of Russia is sometimes suspect, as well as his Russian language.
  • JKohlbrand
    Refreshing take on Russian political commentary
    Podcast has a great approach to discussing the latest events in Russia — goes beyond the Western think tank speculation on Kremlinology to dissect these events against a more academic and nuanced background. Easy listen that packs in a ton of information and insight.
  • Famke Girl
    Has potential
    Great to get some fresh news on Russia that isn’t filtered heavily filtered by my government or Russia.
  • grumpykittenhacker
    Спасибо
    Very interesting to look at Russian news from foreign perspective, although each episode makes me sad
  • Dimate
    Rather uneven podcast
    Some initial episodes were well made and shed additional light in conjunction of Meduza’s coverage and reporting. However, a blatant biased political episode threw me off to a point of dropping the podcast subscription. Why would anyone need to listen to “unscientifically” selected 7 Russian-American Democrats describing their point of view on American elections? If one is a Democrat it would just confirm their biases and would not add anything new to their worldview. If one is a Republican this show of hatred for Trump and liking for socialist candidates would again reveal nothing new coming from Democrats, Russian or not. Useless waste of radio time. Count me out.
  • I386VGA
    5 Star podcast
    An excellent and very well written podcast - with quite detailed and comprehensive coverage of topics with different views on the subject. Nice job!
  • yummykiwi
    Amazing podcast
    Very well produced and researched. Each episode has been very interesting, providing a window into Russia in a way not too basic but still giving the context needed for someone without a lot of background. Also no ads! Thanks so much for making this. I look forward to each episode
  • Houses2
    Good podcast for Russian news and events
    A great podcast for in depth Russian reporting.
  • фвуекрыке
    Nice
    Love it ! Thanks
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