PBS NewsHour’s 2017 Series “Inside Putin’s Russia” Named Recipient of Peabody Award

WASHINGTON, DC (April 24, 2018) — The Peabody Awards Board of Jurors today named PBS NewsHour’s series “Inside Putin’s Russia” a recipient of a Peabody Award for excellence in the News category. The series, nearly one hour of programing across one week of broadcasts, unearthed the roots of today’s Russia — why President Vladimir Putin remains popular, why the government acts the way it does, how its propaganda machine works, and where the conflict with the United States is likely to go. Produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, “Inside Putin’s Russia” represented one of the most robust reporting efforts in recent memory from Russia by an American television program.

PBS NewsHour special correspondent Nick Schifrin, who will start as NewsHour’s new foreign affairs and defense correspondent next month, and producer/cameraman/editor Zach Fannin spent nine months planning, organizing, filming, and editing the series, including for seven weeks in Russia, traveling to more than a dozen cities, and conducting 40 interviews. They were detained by Russian police twice. Schifrin and Fannin’s efforts were supported by local producer Roman Stepanovych; and in Washington by senior foreign affairs producer Morgan Till, managing producer Patti Parson, senior producer for special projects James Blue, creative director Adam Sarraf, and executive producer and WETA senior vice president Sara Just.

“We are so honored by the Peabody Awards’ recognition of this work,” said Just. “At the NewsHour, and with our partners at the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting, we are committed to shining a light and trying to help our audiences understand the world’s most complex issues, like the influence, power and priorities of Russia and Vladimir Putin.”

Till added, “This marvelous honor is a testament to the reporting prowess, visual artistry, and determination of Nick, Zach, and Roman; and to the leadership provided by Sara, NewsHour’s anchor and managing editor Judy Woodruff, and WETA president and CEO Sharon Rockefeller. This was no mean feat, which makes the recognition that much more meaningful.”

Part one examined a new Russian identity — a combination of religion, pre-Soviet traditions, and re-established patriotism — that helps explain how Putin acts and why he remains popular. The second part highlighted Russia’s widespread and effective use of propaganda, from troll factories to Kremlin-controlled television networks. In the third piece, Schifrin and Fannin traveled to Dagestan to investigate the Islamist insurgency, the state’s response that critics call brutal, and accusations by Dagestanis that Russian intelligence agents facilitated young radicals’ travel to join ISIS. The fourth story featured the Kremlin’s enemies discussing the state of the opposition and the critics who have ended up dead. The fifth piece examined the bilateral relationship, revealing why early Russian optimism for President Trump evaporated, and examining the ongoing investigations into President Trump and his campaign.

Schifrin added, “We tried to enhance our audience’s understanding of Russia, and we are humbled by the Peabody jurors’ recognition. We are grateful to all of those who helped us in Russia, to the Pulitzer Center and its leadership, and the entire staff of NewsHour for their guidance, support, and endless encouragement.”

Fannin added, “I am beyond thrilled and grateful that our effort has been recognized with this high honor in video journalism. Our small production team operated with both great nimbleness and great precision in order to attempt to reveal the heart and soul of modern Russia. This was a formidable task, considering the many state imposed challenges that are unavoidable when working in the Russian Federation.”

About PBS NewsHour

PBS NewsHour is seen by over four million weekly viewers and is also available online, via public radio in select markets, and via podcast. PBS NewsHour is a production of NewsHour Productions LLC, a wholly-owned non-profit subsidiary of WETA Washington, D.C., in association with WNET in New York. Major funding for PBS NewsHour is provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, PBS and public television viewers. Major corporate funding is provided by BNSF, Consumer Cellular, Leidos, Babbel, and Raymond James, with additional support from Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, Carnegie Corporation of New York, the J. Paul Getty Trust, the S.D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Lemelson Foundation, National Science Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Ford Foundation, Skoll Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Friends of the NewsHour and others. More information on PBS NewsHour is available at www.pbs.org/newshour. On social media, visit PBS NewsHour on Facebook or follow @NewsHour on Twitter.