The Pussy Riot activist turned Kremlin informer

In January 2012, a group of women known as Pussy Riot staged a punk performance in Moscow's Red Square to protest against Vladimir Putin. Their actions sparked a movement, but also led to severe reprisals from the Russian government, resulting in some members serving prison sentences. The episode shifts to August 2023 when Rita Flores, a former Pussy Riot member, claimed she had been an informant for the FSB (Federal Security Service of the Russian Federation). The guest, Sean Walker, discusses the background of Rita's involvement with Pussy Riot and her subsequent recruitment by the FSB under threats against her family and herself.

Flores explains that she was coerced into this role after being approached during a police search at her apartment. Initially, she was given minimal payment but eventually faced more serious demands from her handlers, including targeting other activists for information. Throughout the episode, the hosts discuss how repression in Russia intensified following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine, drastically affecting dissent and freedom of expression.

As the conversation unfolds, the hosts also tell of Flores's attempts at subterfuge, passing minimal or basic information to her handlers while actually trying to undermine them. The narrative concludes with reflections from Masha Alyokhina of Pussy Riot, who expresses a complex mixture of shock, understanding, and the necessity of pragmatism in assessing Rita's actions.