Wall Street Journal leaves front page portion blank in honor of Evan Gershkovich: 'His story should be here'
Friday marks one full year of WSJ reporter's wrongful detainment in Russia
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Wall Street Journal put a massive blank space on its front page on Friday in honor of Evan Gershkovich, its correspondent who's been imprisoned in Russia for exactly one year.
The media outlet shared the image to its X account early Friday morning, noting, "Here is an early look at the front page of a special section wrapping today's Wall Street Journal."
The special front page featured a large blank space where a story about Gershkovich should be. In big bold letters above the space, the outlet declared, "HIS STORY SHOULD BE HERE." A picture of the imprisoned journalist sat to the left of the headline.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}EVAN GERSHKOVICH'S PARENTS TO ATTEND STATE OF THE UNION AS SPEAKER JOHNSON'S GUESTS
American Evan Gershkovich has been detained by Russia on dubious espionage charges for exactly one year on Friday. (WSJ)
Above both, text read, "ONE YEAR STOLEN." The subheader for the "blank" story stated, "A year in Russian prison. A year of stolen stories, stolen joys, stolen memories. The crime: journalism."
The Journal’s special section also featured several other stories about Gershkovich, and authoritarian governments imprisoning other journalists around the world. One story delved into how these journalists' families have been living through these tragedies.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Gershkovich, the American-born son of Soviet immigrants, was detained on March 29, 2023, during a reporting trip in Yekaterinburg, the fourth-largest city in Russia, and accused of being a spy. He was accredited by Russia's Foreign Ministry to report in the country when he was arrested, and he is considered wrongfully detained by the Biden administration.
Friday marks a full year since his capture and imprisonment by the Russian government on charges that the U.S. government and Wall Street Journal have called absurd.
A closed Russian court recently decided to extend his detention until at least June 30. He has been held in the infamous Lefortovo jail for the entirety of his stay, a place where Soviet Union dictator Joseph Stalin conducted many executions during his Great Purge.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Wall Street Journal has arranged numerous events in an effort to raise awareness for Evan Gershkovich. (WSJ)
A Russian journalist who escaped the country recently told Fox News Digital the prison is designed to isolate and psychologically wear down its inmates, though Gershkovich is reportedly staying strong.
His friends and family are still praying that Gershkovich will be released soon.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The reporter’s sister, Danielle, told Fox News Channel’s "America’s Newsroom" on Friday, "I love my brother so much. I miss him so much. So when I get to talk about him, it's actually kind of nice. We have no other choice but to keep going, and we're just going to stay positive and believe that we'll get him home."
His friend and fellow journalist Pjotr Sauer told Fox News Digital, "It’s been a nightmare for us. One year is such a long period that Evan has been in jail. We all know these charges are completely bogus and we hope the White House will do everything it can."
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital’s David Rutz and Brian Flood contributed to this report.