Journalists in peril: Ukraine's truth-tellers under attack

On the first day of the invasion, the world turned upside down. A catastrophe of incredible proportions occurred, says Katerina Sergatskova, a Ukrainian journalist and director of "Daily Humanity." "The life of every Ukrainian changed dramatically, and the life of journalists became even more precarious," she emphasizes.

According to Sergatskova, in the spring of 2022, reporters in Ukraine faced a difficult choice: to report what was happening to the people, quit their jobs to save themselves and their loved ones, flee the country, or go to the front line.

It was literally a choice between journalism and death—a very difficult choice. For many, it led to death. In just the first month of the full-scale invasion, 13 journalists were killed, including an independent Russian journalist. Among the dead and wounded were many of my friends and acquaintances. Some were fortunate, survived, and continue to work, emphasizes the Meduza portal.

In the third year of the invasion, Ukrainians began transferring their frustration with bad news to the journalists who reported it, according to representatives of the Ukrainian media market interviewed by Meduza. Media workers faced many unsolvable ethical dilemmas during the war.

In the spring of 2022, Ukrainian media supported official Kyiv and President Volodymyr Zelensky personally. Journalists practically did not criticize the authorities' decisions. However, just a few months later, the situation changed.

With horror, we realized that the war continues, people are dying, but corrupt officials have not disappeared, says a source in the leadership of one of the independent Ukrainian publications interviewed by Meduza.

Many investigative journalists argued at the time about how they could continue their profession without harming Ukraine. As a result, most concluded that abuses of power must be exposed, no matter what.

First and foremost, corruption is a direct threat to people on the front line. If they do not receive vital resources, the chances of losing the war increase. Secondly, if people only learn about the true scale of the problem after the war ends, the responsibility will fall on the media. Thirdly, this war continues in part because we chose a democratic path of development and are trying to change everything somehow, says one of the Ukrainians.

Ukrainian journalists began to write the truth, and problems started for them. An example? On January 14, 2024, several men in hooded jackets arrived at the home of investigative journalist Yuri Nikolov.

They began banging on the apartment door, threatening to "send Nikolov to the front line." After the unknown individuals left, the journalist found notes stuck to his door with the words "traitor" and "draft-dodger, go serve in the army."

Nikolov is a co-founder and editor of the publication "Nashe Groshi" ("Our Money"), which specializes in anti-corruption investigations. Their publications have led to the cancellation of over 70 contracts, saving Ukraine 1.2 billion dollars.

Nikolov was the author of an investigation into theft at the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Following his reporting, several officials, including Minister Oleksii Reznikov, lost their positions, and the Verkhovna Rada introduced a more transparent defense procurement system.

A film shot by unknown individuals who tried to break into the journalist's apartment was first published on the anonymous Telegram channel "Card Office" (100,000 subscribers).

The film was accompanied by a comment: "The army came from the front to 'deliver the agenda to a certain famous journalist.'"