Speaking with: journalist Masha Gessen on Putin’s Russia

‘I wouldn’t call it a miracle, I’d call it an accident’ – Gessen on Putin’s formative experience with the KGB. Christchurch City LibrariesRussian-American writer and LGBT activist, Masha Gessen has covered every major development in Russian politics and culture of the past two decades. She is the author of Words Will Break Cement: The Passion of Pussy Riot (2014), as well as six other books, including the international bestseller The Man Without a Face: The Unlikely Rise of Vladimir Putin (2012). Here, Judith Armstrong talks to Gessen about protest and politics in Putin’s Russia. See also: Why we underestimate Putin, according to Masha Gessen Masha Gessen is appearing at the Melbourne Writers’ Festival tonight and tomorrow and is also a guest of the Sydney Opera House Festival of Dangerous Ideas over the weekend. Read more coverage of the Melbourne Writers’ Festival. Listen to other podcast episodes here. Judith Armstrong does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.