Ukrainian media professionals brought first-hand experience
of exposing Kremlin propaganda to London
On June 18-19th, founders and representatives of the important civic projects, including Ukraine Crisis Media Centre, stopfake.org and The Kyiv Post had a series of meetings in London with opinion formers, media and the Ukrainian community to make the international audiences more aware of the peculiarities of the information war waged from the Russian Federation and risks of superfluous interpretation of the news in today’s highly charged media environment.
The UK visit included:
- Henry Jackson Society event in the House of Commons called “Ukraine Crisis: Competing for Narrative and Countering Propaganda chaired by MP John Whittingdale;
- Frontline Club event called “Ukraine Crisis: Turning the Page and Shaping the Narrative” chaired by BBC diplomatic correspondent Bridget Kendall;
- The Ukrainian Institute in Holland Park event called “Beyond the Front Line: Fighting the Information War”.
Yevhen Fedchenko, founder of stopfake.org initiative, said: “We noticed a change in reporting from Russia when the Maidan protests against former President Yanukovych began in Kyiv in November last year. Russian news channels were reporting daily that fascists were trying to seize power in Ukraine, and that Russians and Russian speakers there were in grave danger, despite there being no evidence of this. When Yanukovych fled to Russia, and Putin illegally annexed Crimea, the Kremlin’s propaganda machine was already working at full capacity. We started stopfake.org in March to identify, check and expose the lies that were appearing in the news and on social media and to help prevent Putin’s dangerous false narrative about Ukraine gaining credibility in Europe and the rest of the world.”
Natalia Popovych, co-founder of the Ukraine Crisis Media Center, said: “We felt that in the face of the new aggression from Russia, Ukraine’s voice had to be amplified both within Ukraine, weakened by previous corrupt regime of Yanukovych, as well as internationally. Ukraine’s story is an un-convenient truth for Russia, but it is truth and it has to be stronger, especially when Russia is limiting the international dialogue to only one narrative, that which is convenient for Russia. UCMC acts as communications hub and helps to tell Ukraine’s story.”
Katya Gorchinskaya, deputy editor of The Kyiv Post, said: “I spent a lot of time reporting from EuroMaidan. I have to tell you that there were people from every part of Ukraine and it didn’t matter what language they spoke, they were all there fighting for the same cause. Which proved to a lot of Ukrainians, to ourselves, that we are not what the political spin-doctors and the Russian media are trying to spin us. We are the same nation and we do rejoice in our diversity”.
This UK visit is the continuation of a series of visits spearheaded by Ukraine Crisis Media Center – a project called upon making Ukraine more of a cognita destination for the international audiences through the prism of lectures, debates, information sessions by leading Ukrainian professionals, government officials, intellectuals, academia and media. Similar visit to France earlier in June entailed debates at the National Assembly and included a host of Ukrainian economists, historians and civic activists.
About the Ukrainian Crisis Media Center
The Ukrainian Crisis Media Center was set up to provide the international community with objective information about events in Ukraine and threats to national security. Set up in March 2014, the Centre is providing media support on a 24/7 basis to all those covering events in Ukraine and runs a daily schedule of live press briefings and moderated discussions to provide the world with accurate and up-to-date information about the fast-moving situation in Ukraine. Over 1500 media now use information from UCMC in their day-to-day work covering Ukraine.
About stopfake.org
Launched in March 2014, stopfake.org is a dedicated fact-checking website by a group of Ukrainian journalists determined to fight the rising tide of propaganda originating from Russian news outlets. Since its inception stopfake.org has identified and exposed over 200 stories of Russian propaganda.
About the Ukrainian Institute in London
The Ukrainian Institute in London develops and promotes a greater awareness, understanding and knowledge of Ukrainian history, language, current affairs, business, economy, literature, religion and culture through educational, professional and networking activities. Based in Holland Park (London), it is maintained and supported by the Society of St Sophia, a UK registered charity founded in 1979.
ENDS
Notes to Editors
The joint report from stopfake.org and the Ukrainian Institute is available to view here.
The video from Frontline Club event is available here.
For more information or comments please contact: Olena Kalabania [email protected], +38 050 317 1290.
