THE NATIONAL UNION OF
JOURNALISTS OF UKRAINE
In every fourth newsroom, working in the front-line and de-occupied territories of Ukraine, 1-2 people work on the creation of a newspaper. The average percentage of the drop in revenues of newsrooms is almost two-thirds. The average salary (where it is paid at least) is UAH 8,000.
Almost all publications admit that without the help of international financial donors, they would be forced to close.
“Before the war, we were a self-sufficient newsroom that had a stable income and without any subsidies or grants provided the weekly issue of two printed editions with a total volume of 40 pages,” says Svitlana Ovcharenko, the editor-in-chief of the Vpered newspaper from the city of Bakhmut, Donetsk Region. “When the war started, we got rid of everything we had. I applied for grants but was denied, and I did not even hope to restore the Vpered newspaper. But with the support of the NUJU, we have resumed printing our publication. It was a real miracle. Thanks to the information from the Forward newspaper, many Bakhmut residents got to know how to evacuate from the city, where to get stoves and humanitarian aid, and where to apply for government services. This information saved many lives.”
The NUJU, with the support of the Increasing Ukrainian Media Sustainability project, implemented by the International Institute for Regional Media and Information (IRMI, Ukraine) in partnership with Fondation Hirondelle with the financial support of Swiss Solidarity, has conducted a survey of the needs of local newspapers in the front-line and de-occupied territories of Ukraine.
“Ukrainian press in the front-line and de-occupied territories is a symbol of unity, faith, the inspiration of Ukrainians to fight and win,” NUJU head Sergiy Tomilenko emphasizes. “Currently, in the front-line territories, which have problems with communications, traditional print media trusted by local residents, are getting a second wind. The NUJU thanks the front-line media teams for their efforts and will do everything possible to help them find an opportunity to survive the difficult times of war and enter peacetime being stronger, modernized, and ready for a dignified response to the challenges of the time.”
Thirty newsrooms from 10 regions, either de-occupied or located near the front, participated in the study. As it turned out, after a forced multi-month break, which was an average of six months, 90% of the newspapers participating in the study resumed publishing, but three newspapers managed to print only 1-2 issues. So, it’s untimely to talk about returning to a stable output schedule yet. Every second printed edition reduced the frequency of publication by 2-4 times. All newspapers, except one, reduced the number of pages on average by half; every second newspaper reduced the publishing frequency by 2-4 times. So, newspaper publishing has been resumed in general, but the operation is taking place in an economic mode.
“With this study, we aimed to bring the voices of journalists from the border and de-occupied territories to the general public,” says NUJU Secretary/ author of the study, Vitalii Holubev. “The editor of one of the newspapers from the border regions of the Sumy Region said: “Central TV channels will not come to us, and if they do come, their number will be small. And we not only work here but also live here. Here, in the gray zone, people also live. And they need not only bread but also information.” I believe this is a very important opinion that characterizes the indomitability of newsrooms from the border and de-occupied territories.”
The study results were presented on July 4 during a two-day offline training within the educational project, Steps To Sustainable Development for local media from the front-line and de-occupied territories, held with the assistance of UNESCO and the Japanese government.
The resumption of print media publishing and providing information to the population in the front-line and de-occupied territories of Ukraine are among the priorities of the National Union of Journalists of Ukraine.
NUJU Information Service
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