Shaun Walker (journalist)

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Shaun Walker (born 1981 or 1982) is a British journalist and author, noted primarily for his writing on Ukraine, and Russia for British newspaper The Guardian. [1] [2] Walker was shortlisted for the 2024 UK Press Awards. [3]

Contents

Career

Walker visited Russia for the first time as an 18-year-old, in 2000, working as an English teacher, and then travelling around the country. [2] Walker then returned home to the UK, where he studied Russian and Soviet history at Oxford University. [4] After completing his studies, Walker returned to Moscow at the end of 2003, working for an NGO for a year, before taking up journalism. [2] Walker was taken on by The Independent in 2007, and worked as their Moscow correspondent until 2013. [5]

From 2014, working for The Guardian, primarily as their Ukraine and Russia correspondent, Walker has extensively covered the war in Donbas. [6] [7] [8] Walker wrote a downbeat 'farewell' article to Russia in early 2018, stating that he would return for the upcoming World Cup, but after that he was 'off for real', expressing his desire to return one day to see a 'post-Putin' Russia. [2] Walker did return for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, this time writing an upbeat article about the "positive atmosphere: the street parties, the surprisingly lax police presence, the good-natured welcome from the majority of Russians, and the hot weather and cheap beer." [9] [1]

From 2019, Walker has been the Guardian's central and eastern Europe correspondent. [8] As of 2018 Walker was living in Budapest, Hungary. [2] He writes on Europe for the Guardian, and continues to cover Ukraine and Russia. [10] [11] [12] Walker also takes part in Guardian podcasts. [13]

Political views

In his time working for the Independent and Guardian, Walker frequently expressed his support for Russian opposition politician Alexey Navalny. [5] [14] Writing after Navalny's death in a Russian penal colony in February 2024, Walker stated that he believed Navalny had been mistaken to return to Russia in 2021, as he could have been able to co-ordinate a 'powerful anti-war movement' from abroad. [15]

Walker has received praise for his writing on the Russian invasion of Ukraine, which has been consistently in support of Ukraine. [3] [11] Walker has also been criticised for some his pro-Russian writings prior to 2022, including a 2014 article for the Guardian entitled "I can't stop dreaming about Vladimir Putin", and his positive comments on Russia at the time of the 2018 World Cup. [16] [1] In October 2024, Walker wrote an extended article about suspected Russian spy Pablo González. [17]

Books

Walker is the author of two non-fiction books, 2014's Odessa Dreams: The Dark Heart of Ukraine's Online Marriage Industry, and 2018's The Long Hangover: Putin's New Russia and the Ghosts of the Past. [18] [19]

Bibliography

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Ashenden, Robin (25 March 2023). "Why was the West so slow to see Putin's true colours?". The Spectator . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Walker, Shaun (18 February 2018). "Putin's quest for lost glory". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  3. 1 2 "2024 Press Awards Finalists Shaun Walker" . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  4. ↑ "The Importance of History: Reflections from a Foreign Correspondent" . Retrieved 6 May 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Shaun Walker at the Independent". The Independent. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  6. ↑ "Weekend Shelling Kills 30 People In Eastern Ukraine". npr.org. 26 January 2015. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  7. ↑ Walker, Shaun (26 January 2015). "Donetsk bus hit by mortar as Ukrainian forces lose control of airport". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Shaun Walker profile". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  9. ↑ "Will the World Cup finally change how Russia is portrayed?". The Guardian. 12 July 2018. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  10. ↑ Walker, Shaun (12 May 2024). "Ukraine facing 'difficult' situation in Kharkiv region, military chief says". The Guardian . Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  11. 1 2 Walker, Shaun (22 May 2024). "'All the old rules are destroyed': how Kharkiv is coping with life under constant attack". The Guardian . Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  12. ↑ Walker, Shaun (6 June 2024). "'It's emotionally very difficult': mobilisation squads face hostility as Ukraine tries to boost army ranks". The Guardian . Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  13. ↑ "Kicking out the populists: how young voters helped swing Poland's election". The Guardian . 19 October 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  14. ↑ "Alexei Navalny on Putin's Russia: 'All autocratic regimes come to an end'". The Guardian . 29 April 2017. Retrieved 13 May 2024.
  15. ↑ "Long opposed to exile, Alexei Navalny dies a prisoner in a dark and dangerous Russia". The Guardian . 16 February 2024. Retrieved 27 May 2024.
  16. ↑ Walker, Shaun (27 January 2014). "I can't stop dreaming about Vladimir Putin". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  17. ↑ "Journalist or Russian spy? The strange case of Pablo González". The Guardian . 15 October 2024. Retrieved 26 October 2024.
  18. ↑ Walker, Shaun (6 April 2014). "The men who go to Ukraine looking for a wife then fly home alone and broke". The Guardian . Retrieved 5 May 2024.
  19. ↑ Bullough, Oliver (25 February 2018). "The Long Hangover by Shaun Walker – review". The Guardian . Retrieved 7 May 2024.
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