Top Secret faces closure threat after losing Rostelecom carriage

One of the few TV channels in Russia to give space to independent journalism is in danger of being shut down after state-backed service provider Rostelelecom cancelled its carriage contract, according to local reports.

Pay TV channel Sovershenno Sekretno (Top Secret) received notice of early termination of its deal with Rostelecom in August. According to the channel’s management, the telco has refused to enter into negotiations with it and the service is now in danger of closure.

Top Secret attracts an audience of about 15 million viewers across Russia, the CIS, the Baltic States and Israel.

The Top Secret organisation was founded in 1991 by journalist Artyom Borovik and supplied programming focusing on investigative journalism to a number of the country’s leading TV channels during the 1990s. The Top Secret channel was launched in October 2006 and distributed via cable and satellite platforms.