On this episode, former BBC journalist Leonid Ragozin joins Tom from Latvia to discuss the perception of Russia in the West, the origins of Western xenophobia towards Russia, his view of Vladimir Putin in 2000, and his experience working as an independent journalist on the investigations of high profile figures murdered in Ukraine. We hope you enjoy!

ABOUT THE GUEST
Leonid is a Russian journalist who worked for 12 years with the BBC in Moscow. He is a widely acknowledged expert on the ongoing crisis in Ukraine. Previously he was a correspondent for Newsweek. He now writes for The New Republic, Politico, Bloomberg, News Week, The Guardian and Al Jazeera and Morgenbladet. He is also co-author of the Lonely Planet Guides to Moscow and Ukraine. Additionally, he works on the investigation of Pavel Sheremet with Radio Free Europe-funded Ukrainian media outlet Zaborona.

Here are links to a selection of Ragozin's excellent articles:
1) Articles for Bloomberg https://www.themoscowtimes.com/author/leonid-ragozin-for-bloomberg
2) Articles for Al Jazeera https://www.aljazeera.com/author/leonid_ragozin_2013122273219325632/
3) Articles for Kyiv Post https://www.kyivpost.com/author/leonid-ragozin?cn-reloaded=1
4) Articles for The Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/profile/leonid-ragozin

Follow Leonid on Twitter: @leonidragozin

Here is the 2nd part of our investigation into the death of Pavel Sheremet. It focuses on a group politicians and law-enforcers who managed to survive the 2016 political crisis despite zero popularity, while seizing assets of Sheremet’s de-facto employer.https://t.co/U4I6z9wvPW

— Leonid Ragozin (@leonidragozin) September 23, 2020

A rootless cosmopolitan (me) linking up with Texas on @SlavXRadio podcast. Talking about issues of journalism and nationality, Russia’s place in Western psyche and our latest @zaborona_media investigation into the death of Pavel Sheremet. https://t.co/QJNb2Npttx

— Leonid Ragozin (@leonidragozin) September 30, 2020

NOTE: This episode was recorded on Friday, September 25th, 2020 via Skype.

CREDITS
Co-Producer: Tom Rehnquist (Connect: Twitter @RehnquistTom)
Co-Producer: Matthew Orr (Connect: facebook.com/orrrmatthew)
Associate Producer: Lera Toropin
Associate Producer: Cullan Bendig
Assistant Producer: Samantha Farmer
Assistant Producer: Milena D-K
Assistant Producer/Administrator: Kathryn Yegorov-Crate
Recording, Editing, and Sound Design: Michelle Daniel

Music Producer: Charlie Harper (Connect: facebook.com/charlie.harper.1485 Instagram: @charlieharpermusic) www.charlieharpermusic.com (Main Theme by Charlie Harper and additional background music by Charlie Harper, Michelle Daniel, Ketsa, Soularflair, and Blue Dot Sessions) Additional clips of Vladimir Putin's speech on December 31, 1999, coverage of car bombing in Kyiv from RFE/RL, and Yeltsin endorsement of Putin while delivering his vote taken from YouTube.

Executive Producer & Creator: Michelle Daniel (Connect: facebook.com/mdanielgeraci Instagram: @michelledaniel86) www.msdaniel.com

DISCLAIMER: The views expressed on this episode do not necessarily reflect those of the show or the University of Texas at Austin.

Special Guest: Leonid Ragozin.