National Council calls on Cabinet to introduce targeted programs to support print media

The National Council for Television and Radio Broadcasting has appealed to the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, requesting urgent support for local print media that are on the verge of extinction.

The appeal was a reaction to the difficult situation in which the print press found itself. According to the National Council, the number of regional, district, and city publications has decreased from 2,469 in 2020 to less than 1,000 today. Among the initiators of the appeal to the media regulator was the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine (NUJU).

Local publications in frontline and de-occupied territories often remain the only source of information for communities, but they are the ones who suffer the most from the financial crisis. Their disappearance threatens the loss of cultural heritage. After all, local newspapers formed the state chronicle and entered the national archives.

Relocated media are forced to start from scratch without state support due to the suspension of funding for programs outlined in the Documentary Heritage Protection Strategy.

Additional blows to the industry include the mass dismantling of press kiosks (in Kyiv alone, more than 80% of points of sale have been demolished since the beginning of 2025), the narrowing of subscription catalogs, and problems with the delivery of publications, especially in frontline settlements.

The National Council organized a roundtable with the participation of people’s deputies, representatives of the Ministry of Culture and the Strategic Committee, JSC Ukrposhta, international organizations, editors, and publishers. The participants unanimously recognized the need for comprehensive systemic solutions to save the Ukrainian print press.

The media regulator urges the government to implement state-targeted programs for financial support to the print media. This is in line with the Documentary Heritage Protection Strategy, approved by the Cabinet of Ministers at the end of 2024.

The National Council also emphasizes the need to develop legislation, in particular the Law On State Support for the Media, Guarantees of Professional Activity and Social Protection of Journalists, and is ready to participate in the development of updated norms and determination of priorities for supporting the print press.

“The state must prevent the destruction of print media by restoring state programs and providing targeted support,” says the appeal signed by the First Deputy Chairperson of the National Council, Valentyn Koval.