2026 Spring Conference Recap

By Cynthia Price

For 491 days, Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich was wrongfully detained by Russia — and a global communications campaign worked relentlessly to ensure the world didn’t forget.

Ashley Huston, a former Dow Jones communications executive, shared an inside look at that effort during the Virginia Professional Communicators’ recent Spring Conference, held in April at the University of Richmond. From March 2023 to August 2024, Huston led strategic and advocacy communications supporting the push for Gershkovich’s release.

“This was the type of crisis where we wanted people to keep talking about it,” she said

Huston was interviewed by Diane Thieke, VPC’s second vice president for communications, in a fireside chat-style talk. As Huston shared with conference attendees, she had not previously led a campaign of this scale, but she quickly found herself coordinating across a wide network that included Dow Jones and Wall Street Journal leadership, editors and colleagues, Gershkovich’s family and friends, and press freedom advocates. She emphasized every decision was guided by one priority: what was best for Gershkovich’s case.

The group developed a communications strategy built on three key pillars: humanizing Gershkovich, maintaining pressure on government officials, and mobilizing support for press freedom. She worked closely with the legal teams. “Everything laddered back up to them,” she said.

The effort focused on keeping Gershkovich’s story personal and visible. Messaging marked milestones such as 100 days, six months and beyond. Statements like “It has been 100 days since Evan Gershkovich was arrested for simply doing his job” and “Journalism is not a crime” reinforced both the urgency and the injustice of his situation.

The campaign also leaned heavily on grassroots engagement. The hashtag #IStandWithEvan quickly trended, supported by a solid social media push. At events and meetings, the team handed out pins in multiple languages bearing the hashtag.

“The pins were a simple, tangible way people could participate and raise awareness,” Huston said.

Sustaining momentum over time proved to be one of the greatest challenges. “The drop off after 100 days was really hard,” Huston said, underscoring the difficulty of keeping public attention focused over an extended period around a single goal.

“Only one outcome was acceptable,” Huston said.

Throughout the campaign, communicators were reminded to be patient. “It’s going to go slowly until it goes suddenly,” they were told — and that’s exactly what happened.

After months of sustained pressure and global attention, the breakthrough came. Gershkovich was released, bringing an end to his 491-day detention.