Journalist Masha Gessen on Russian charges and Putin's crackdown

Russian-born U.S. journalist Masha Gessen was sentenced in absentia in a Moscow court this week to eight years in prison for criticizing the Russian military during an interview with a Russian blogger. It’s an example of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s continued crackdown on any opposition, even by those outside Russia.

Here & Now‘s Deepa Fernandes talks to Masha Gessen, who is a New York Times columnist, about their sentence, the secret trial of Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, which resumed on Thursday in Russia, and the threat of authoritarianism.

This article was originally published on WBUR.org.