The Ukrainian Regional Media Guide is the original and most extensive English-language study of Ukraine's regional media sphere. The Internews Ukraine team has been producing it since 2019 with the help of its longstanding journalistic contacts in the regions and over 25 years of media expertise.

This overview of 500+ regional outlets covering the entirety of Ukraine will help clarify:

• which local media outlets are the most popular in their regions;
• who officially owns these outlets, and who informally influences their work;
• which outlets adhere to journalistic standards, and which often neglect them.

WHOM THIS MEDIA GUIDE IS FOR

• Members of international organizations operating in Ukrainian regions.
• Foreign journalists seeking new media partners in Ukraine.
• Press service employees, experts from foreign embassies, and institutions collaborating with local Ukrainian media.
• Anyone interested in understanding who and how shapes Ukraine's regional media landscape.

"Our organization was among the first to show Ukrainian journalists best international media practices. Now, we are pleased to see growing worldwide interest in Ukraine's media sphere, as well as to shed light on it for our international partners with the Ukrainian Regional Media Guide," Andriy Kulakov, Internews Ukraine Program Director.

HOW TO VIEW THE REPORT

1. Visit internews.ua/en/media-guide.
2. Click "Get access" and register on the website. By clicking "Stay logged in," you can keep viewing the media guide content without entering registration details. You can always update or delete your account in a special section.
3. After registration, you will receive a confirmation email to your provided email. By clicking "Confirm account," you will activate it on the website. If you haven't received this email, please write to info@internews.ua.
4. After activating your account, you can read the description of its media sphere by clicking on your chosen region on the Ukraine map.

HOW WE CONDUCTED OUR RESEARCH

In 2019-2020, Internews Ukraine experts conducted in-depth interviews with over 60 experienced journalists, media managers, and analysts from different regions of Ukraine. The insights we obtained were confirmed by data from open registries and analysis of the outlets themselves.

Our team identified the main media trends, popular regional outlets, and key players influencing Ukraine's regional media markets. This analysis resulted in two editions of the Ukrainian Regional Media Guide for 2020 and 2021.

As part of the research, we also prepared two analytical reviews. The first discusses how the COVID-19 pandemic affected the work of regional media in Ukraine. The second explains how politicians used social media during the 2020 local elections.

The current media guide, in addition to analyzing major players and media, includes a brief overview of popular social media pages. It reflects general trends in Ukraine's regional media sphere during the full-scale war, including:

1. Absence of overt pro-Russian rhetoric in media on government-controlled territory. To the extent pro-Russian messages were present in the media of various regions before February 24, 2022, the outlets producing them have either ceased operation or adjusted their policy after the beginning of the full-scale invasion. However, some outlets still promote politicians who systematically advanced hostile narratives in Ukraine. In temporarily-occupied territories, media collaborators have appeared to cooperate with the Russian authorities. One vivid example is the Kherson TV channel VTV Plus. After the occupation of Kherson, it started working for the enemy, and after the city was liberated, the channel's leaders fled with the occupiers.

2. Cessation of broadcasting by channels owned by major media players promoting their interests. When oligarch Rinat Akhmetov announced his withdrawal from the media business in July 2022, regional channels in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya owned by his media holding, such as Donbas, Sigma, MTB, and TV5 ceased broadcasting. In February 2023, the Zaporizhzhya channel Alex stopped broadcasting. At that time, charges of collaboration and assistance to the aggressor state had been filed against its owner, Vyacheslav Bohuslayev, a former member of the pro-Russian Party of Regions and former president of the Motor Sich concern. A similar fate befell the Live network of regional channels owned by the pro-Russian politician Vadim Stolar. The channels suspended broadcasting "until the completion of hostilities and the cancellation of martial law in Ukraine."

3. Increased role of international donors in funding outlets. Regional media operating across the country increasingly rely on financing from grants. This has been demonstrated by Internews Ukraine's research on challenges and changes in the work of regional media during the full-scale war. For 70% of the 40 publications surveyed, their primary funding comes from international organizations and technical assistance projects.

Ukraine's media landscape is dynamic. Therefore, we will regularly update this report. If you want more detailed information about Ukrainian media, please contact info@internews.ua. Our experts will gladly prepare new analytical reports upon request.