Novaya Gazeta editor Dmitry Muratovs office wall is adorned with a painting depicting, from left, the newspapers chief sponsors, Alexander Levedev and Mikhail Gorbachev, and Russian President Vladimir V. Putin poring over an edition. (Sergei L. Loiko / LAT)
Lawmaker Alexander Lebedev in his office at the State Duma in Moscow. Lebedev, a billionaire with a KGB past, teamed with Gorbachev last year to financially rescue Novaya Gazeta. On the wall is a portrait of Vladimir Putin. (Sergei L. Loiko / LAT)
Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev used his Nobel Peace Prize money to launch the newspaper in 1993. (Sergei L. Loiko / LAT)