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Graphics: BIRN.
The Balkan Investigative Reporting Network launched its Eyewitness Ukraine project on Thursday, a new webpage featuring interviews with Ukrainian journalists who talk about their personal experiences living and working during the Russian invasion of their country.
The journalists speak candidly about how they reacted when they first heard the invasion had begun in February, the dangers they faced covering the war, and how their wartime work affected their personal life.
They also discuss issues such as the war’s impact on media freedom, the challenges of maintaining objectivity while reporting on an invasion of your own country, and the problems posed by official restrictions imposed under martial law, as well as Russian disinformation and propaganda.
“These interviews highlight the commitment of Ukrainian journalists to cover the war in their country despite the risks they face,” said Matthew Collin, BIRN editor of the Eyewitness Ukraine project.
“Nearly six months into the conflict, they have remained dedicated to seeking the truth, informing the public and maintaining media freedom as best they can in a country under invasion,” Colin added.
Among the interviewees are prominent media figures such as Angelina Karyakina, head of news at Ukrainian Public Television, Andrii Tsaplienko, a TV journalist for 1+1 TV who is known for his war reporting, and Natalia Gumenyuk, co-founder of Public Interest Journalism Lab and Hromadske TV .
In her interview with the Eyewitness Ukraine project, Karjakina said that she and other Ukrainian journalists witnessed terrible violence during the conflict.
“I’ve seen the bodies in the streets, I’ve seen the horrific destruction of residential areas, I’ve seen villages just burned,” she said.
“But I have also seen and witnessed incredible examples of solidarity, courage and help,” she added.
Karjakina argues that the purpose of journalism has remained the same despite the war – “to put light in dark places, to give a voice to the voiceless, to tell the truth and just be there for the people”.
As the war continues, BIRN will add more interviews to the Eyewitness Ukraine webpage to give more insight into how media workers cope with the ongoing stress of living through months of conflict while continuing to do their jobs.
The war in Ukraine has already proved deadly for journalists. At least 12 media workers have been killed while covering the conflict so far, and many more have been injured, according to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists.
There is evidence that one of them, photojournalist Max Levin, was executed by Russian forces, media freedom organization Reporters Without Borders claims.
Check out the Eyewitness Ukraine interviews here.
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