It looks as if the Exile, which was once (at times) one of the funniest and most interesting expat publications anywhere, is shutting down. After eleven years of publishing in Moscow, the newspaper that mixed punk rock with political analysis is apparently on the brink of getting closed by Russian authorities. Mark Ames, the editor and founder of the Exile, has written on his tribulations in Radar (here and here), while Exile contributor (and National Bolshevik leader) Eduard Limonov has likewise posted a piece on the closing at grani.ru.

While the Exile has lately been only a shadow of its former self, it's a real shame to see the paper close down. Editors Mark Ames and Matt Taibbi did their best to prevent the paper from being taken seriously by political analyst/international relations types, but the Exile has nevertheless often been a great source of original and detailed analysis of politics in the former USSR. In particular, Ames and friends have been very good at exposing the hypcrisy and double-talk surrounding much of the American media coverage of Russia, including the Moscow-based foreign press corps.

I don't know about other folks who work on Russia but I'll miss reading the Exile, even in its current truncated form.