Situation with respect to mass media in Russia and Ukraine

Western media and politicians tell very much about mass media in Russia where – in Western opinion – mass media and journalists are allegedly persecuted. But the Western media and politicians tell very little about Ukrainian mass media and journalists.

Therefore, in this article I am going to offer some information about situation in Ukraine in this sphere.

In June 2023, the Ukrainian Council for Broadcasting – after a decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine - revoked licenses of seven Ukrainian  opposition television companies

• Nash
• Maksі-TV
• Newsone
• 112 Ukraїna
• Z ZIK
• Ukrlive
• Pershii Nezalezhnii

please see the official website of this Council.

In 2021 the broadcasting of the above-mentioned television companies had been suspended and now they are fully closed.

Every state including Russia and Ukraine has the right to control activities of mass media on its territory. However, in Ukraine the authorities allow the so-called activists to attack opposition mass media without any punishment.

In the summer of 2016, a Ukrainian website accused the Ukrainian TV company Inter of cooperation with separatists. Till November 2016, the building, where this TV company is situated, was three times attacked by “activists” and its rooms were set on fire - fortunately, nobody died in these arsons. However, the material damage was great.

After one of these arsons, an Advisor to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko wrote in Facebook that one shouldn`t rule out that Inter managers themselves had provoked the arson of their rooms; please see here.

So far, no culprits of these arsons have been found; and by the way, so far, Ukrainian authorities haven’t published any confirmation that Inter had really cooperated with separatists. i.e. no criminal proceedings have been started because of these allegations.

Journalists in Ukraine are not only intimidated, but killed too.

In April 2015, the opposition journalist and writer Oles Buzina was shot dead by two gunshots near his house in the Ukrainian capital Kiev. Some days before this murder, Oles Buzina’s name and home address had been published by the Ukrainian  website Myrotvorets (please see here) which coordinates activities of Ukrainian nationalists by publishing lists of so-called “enemies of Ukraine” and their personal information.

And the above-mentioned Advisor to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Gerashchenko is suspected of promoting this website Myrotvorets; please see here.

By the way, after Oles Buzina’s murder, Anton Gerashchenko declared that he did not rule out that Buzina’s murder had been planned and organized by a Russian secret service; please see here. However, so far, no culprits of this murder too have been found. Several suspects of this crime had been arrested but later released by Ukrainian authorities.

But authorities of a country must not tell about versions of crimes – these authorities must investigate the crimes and punish culprits.

However, the Western media and politicians are not interested in the above-mentioned cases at all.

The Western media and politicians are much more interested in the situation with respect to mass media in Russia.

For example, after Magomed Yevloyev, a journalist and the owner of the news website Ingushetiya.ru had been shot dead in the Russian region of Ingushetia in 2008, he was especially mentioned as a victim of a “tragic and unresolved murder” in an U.S. Congress Act which was passed in 2012; please see here. Although the person, who had accidentally shot him - another Yevloyev (Ibragim Yevloyev) - had already been convicted for manslaughter in 2009.