"For Russian civil society as well as for Western reporting independent exiled media are playing a central role: These media are a unique and precious voice that can still make its way to Russian audiences. They are also the foundation of Western reporting on Russia – without them, many international media would struggle to keep up with what is happening in the secretive state. Indeed, recognizing this, they are eager to partner with Russian colleagues on especially high-impact stories: intelligence or disinformation operations in the West, for example. While Russian authorities are building a toolbox for censorship – not just for themselves, but for despotic regimes across the world – Russian exiled media are investing in anti-censorship technologies to fight it. Despite their comparatively small resources and size, they have developed a wide range of innovative digital solutions – from blocking resilient magic links to browser extensions that counter YouTube slowdowns [...] With just a fraction of the budget being spent to silence them, Russia’s exiled independent media have shown that they can not just withstand the new censorship regime, but also to create tools and blueprints that can serve their colleagues in other parts of the world. But they remain vulnerable, and deserve both more stable support and support from a wider range of stakeholders – including Big Tech companies. This report presents the state of the Russian media market as it enters a new, even darker phase, as well as an overview of the media that are fighting back. Hopefully, it can serve to re-energize support, rather than simply serving as a warning of potentially far more serious – and costly – challenges to come if the issues are not addressed now." (Page 1)