The court rejected the appeal of Sophia Volyanova, a journalist for Kholod, upholding a fine of 300 thousand rubles for a text about the harassment of Alexander Kobrinsky, a former professor at the Russian State Pedagogical University and a current member of the Yabloko party, towards female students.
On December 6, 2021, a St. Petersburg court ordered Volyanova to pay this amount to Kobrinsky for the text “Brilliant Professor” – it contains stories of students who accuse the former professor of unethical behavior and harassment.
Kholod challenged this decision, but on July 19 the court rejected the appeal.
After the publication of the text, the editors of the publication received new evidence of Kobrinsky's unethical behavior. According to Kholod, for years he persistently wrote to dozens of female students, inviting them to visit or to cafes, and ignored the refusals.
Kobrinsky demanded a million rubles for compensation for "moral damage" for small episodes of the text – in them two heroines said that Korbinsky used violence against them. The court estimated the harm caused to the ex-deputy at 300 thousand rubles.
The editors of Kholod announced a fundraiser to pay a fine for Sofia Volyanova.
“We ask our readers to support Sophia and the editorial staff of Kholod in paying this unfair fine,” the editorial said in a statement.