Ukrainians Turn to VOA and RFE/RL for Unbiased News
As accurate and unbiased information becomes increasingly important in Ukraine, Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty are providing uncompromising coverage and expert analysis on the latest developments in the standoff with Russia.
On the day of the Crimean referendum, Voice of America provided extensive coverage, speaking with citizens after they cast their votes and providing updates as the results came in. The network covered reaction from Kyiv and along the Ukraine-Russian border, where tens of thousands of Russian troops were massing. It also featured an interview of Bohdan Futey, a U.S. federal judge who was involved in drafting the Ukrainian Constitution and who explained the illegality of the referendum.
Chas-Time, the VOA Ukrainian Service’s popular prime-time TV news program, included a live remote from the White House during Ukrainian Prime Minister Yatsenyuk’s visit to Washington and covered statements by President Obama and Yatsenyuk’s address at the Atlantic Council. Two special reports on the visit were produced for ICTV and 1+1, two of Ukraine’s most popular TV networks. The Service has also covered reaction by U.S. lawmakers including Senators John McCain (R-AZ) and Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Reps. Eliot Engel (D-NY) and Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), who co-chairs the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus.
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty is also providing extensive coverage in the region from its Central Newsroom and Radio Svoboda. The network’s very popular Live Blog is continuously updated and includes a sampling of its most popular stories on the RFE/RL website and social media.
RFE/RL created a new fact-checking blog, #UkraineUnspun to help citizens unpack the truth amid competing narratives being advanced by sources that are neither neutral nor reliable. Written by Glenn Kates and contributors from RFE/RL, #UkraineUnspun unravels information coming from Russian and Ukrainian media, politicians and activists.
RFE/RL is also speaking with communities most affected by developments. A month after the overthrow of Viktor Yanukovych, Euromaidan activists are still searching for almost two hundred missing Ukrainians. RFE/RL spoke with relatives of some of the missing about the increasing fear that the death toll of Maidan may never be known. And in Crimea, the torture and killing of a Crimean Tatar activist has raised fears among members of the Black Sea peninsula’s Muslim community.
Reporting from both networks has been cited by several news organizations, including CNN, NBC, and NPR.