Life in Moscow - Why I Moved to Russia in 2022

Hi, I’m Rachel! I wanted to make a quick video with some updates on the last year.

I’m a journalist from Texas, and I’m currently living in Moscow, Russia, and one of the biggest questions I get is… How did I end up here?

I’ve been working as an independent journalist for nearly a decade, and I started out freelancing when I was college. I went on to join RT America as a news correspondent at their headquarters in Washington, DC in 2018.

I spent the next three years reporting on major topics that included foreign policy, government corruption and media hypocrisy. I covered everything from protests on the streets of DC, to meetings with foreign leaders at the White House.

In 2021, I joined RT’s international economics, business and technology show Boom Bust as a Co-Host. There, I got to explore some of the most important issues affecting the global economy at a pivotal time in history, and I had the privilege of interviewing the best in the industry, as central banks printed a record amount of money and cryptocurrencies hit record highs.

Then came 2022 and the war in Ukraine… If you’ve been following me for the last year, then you probably know that my life became national news when RT America shut down productions on March 3. That led to a massive increase in censorship at the hands of Big Tech as Twitter proudly announced it would be shadow-banning my account, due to my work with RT.

So, in the face of both unprecedented censorship and uncertainty, I decided to step completely out of my comfort zone, and I accepted RT International’s offer to relocate to Moscow.

Before you ask… no, I don’t speak Russian and I had never been to Russia.

But I am a journalist, and the opportunity to be in the largest country in the world as it became the most sanctioned nation in the world, with the U.S. and its allies imposing an unprecedented campaign against it is an incredibly unique experience.

For years now, so much of my work has centered around the hypocrisy of the establishment media, especially as it relates to their coverage of Western foreign policy. And nowhere is that more prevalent right now than in the way they are covering the conflict in Ukraine.

Not only is that coverage aggressively one-sided, but it’s also presented almost entirely without context. 

And while many Americans see this conflict as something insignificant, in the sense that it exists in the news and on social media, but it doesn’t affect THEIR daily lives – the reality is that as NATO become increasingly involved—from funding to send weapons, supplies and even tanks—they are, as Germany’s Foreign Minister recently admitted, fighting a direct war against Russia.

And it’s not just the media. It’s also Big Tech that has continued to increase the censorship to an unprecedented rate, labeling whatever the establishment doesn’t like as “disinformation.”

So, if you find value in my work, please don’t forget to follow me on any on social media platforms you’re on… especially alternatives like Telegram, Minds, Rokfin, Rumble and Odysee. And if you’ve followed me for just a few days or if you’ve been on this journey with me a few years now, I want to say thank you for all of your support.