Press Freedom Centers in Ukraine

What are the Press Freedom Centers?

In the aftermath of the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine, RSF opened two Press Freedom Centers in Lviv on 10 March 2022 and in Kyiv on 17 May 2022, to provide journalists and media covering the war, whether Ukrainian or foreign, with the necessary equipment, assistance and resources to pursue their journalistic work as safely as possible.

As of February 2023, the Press Freedom Centers has provided support to up to 1 300 journalists and media outlets, 80% of whom are Ukrainian, notably in partnership with RSF’s partner the Institute of Mass Information (IMI). RSF also continues to vividly denounce attacks on journalists and media, and to investigate and litigate these crimes.

Why is this important?

A total of 12,000 Ukrainian and foreign journalists have been accredited to cover the war in Ukraine. Exposed to frequent bombardment and often deliberately targeted by Russian forces, they risk their lives every day to report what is happening. While the situation is particularly alarming for journalists in the occupied areas, all of the Ukrainian journalists and media have been hit hard by the war and its repercussions.

Since 24 February 2022, 9 reporters were killed and 20 were injured by gunfire. Of the 50 cases registered by RSF of journalists who came under rifle fire or artillery fire, at least 28 of them were deliberately targeted as journalists.

What assistance and support can journalists and media get ?

All requests can be sent to the common address of the Lviv and Kyiv Centers: [email protected]

Free loan of personal protective equipment (PPE)

In Lviv and Kyiv, over 750 journalists and media professionals accredited with the Ukrainian Armed Forces have benefitted from temporary and free loan of:

bulletproof vests
protective helmets
trauma first aid kits
solar power banks

The borrower will be asked to provide copies of ID and accreditation with Armed Forces, and to sign a loanform.

Send a request by email to RSF Press Freedom Centers at [email protected].

Energy-related equipment

RSF, in partnership with the Institute of Mass Information, has launched an opportunity for the media to obtain power supply equipment. The opportunity is open only to those media that work in Ukraine and suffer from a blackout caused by Russian shelling.

96 Ukrainian media in 14 oblasts have already received support through this programme with :

generators
solar charging stations
solar power banks

To apply for equipment, please fill out this online form.

Please note that the number of equipment is limited and the times of delivery can stretch to several months.

Send a request by email to RSF Press Freedom Centers at [email protected].

Safety/security capacity building and training

Since 24 February 2022, more than 300 journalists and media professionals were trained in Ukraine to better be able to face war-related risks in the course of their work.

Please apply here for the following training programmes :

physical safety and first aid (3-day Hostile Environment Awareness Training)
psychological safety
digital safety

Capacity building on the safety of journalists can also be browsed through RSF website for Journalists’ Safety, available in English and now in Ukrainian as well, with content related to

digital security
physical safety
mental health

[Drop-down list of links to the following resources (PDF files)] :

List of useful capacity building resources :

RSF - Digital security lab
RSF - Safety guide for journalists - A handbook for reporters in high-risk environments, 2015 (in 5 languages)
RSF - Practical sheets on Psychological safety, 2022 (in English and Ukrainian)
Dart Center - Reporting War handbook on psychological safety, 2005 (in English)
Dart Center - Trauma & Journalism: A Guide For Journalists, Editors & Managers, 2007 (in English)

Psychological support

Journalists and media professionals covering the war can get free online individual psychological support funded by RSF, with full respect for safety, confidentiality and anonymity.

The caring.eutelmed.com platform is available for journalists to access :

Individual counselling sessions with a professional psychologist (up to 10 sessions)
a Resource Center with general information on mental health
a Self-Assessment Center
a 24/7 Careline (phone or messaging in more than 50 languages)

To get the access code, send an email to [email protected] or [email protected].

Individual financial assistance to Ukrainian journalists

In partnership with the Institute of Mass Information (IMI), RSF has supported 130 Ukrainian journalists with financial assistance grants to cover costs related to :

urgent relocation
medical fees for journalists injured while reporting
equipment support for freelance journalists whose professional material has been damaged or confiscated

All requests should be submitted to [email protected].

Financial assistance to Ukrainian media

From 24 February 2022, many Ukrainian media outlets saw their main financial resources such as advertising suddenly disappear. While it is crucial to keep providing independent and verified information in this context, a lot of media outlets are facing major difficulties to keep paying the salaries of their journalists covering the events going on in Ukraine.

Most of those media outlets have turned to international donors to ask for support. However, those donors usually have long processes and it takes time for them to give an answer to the applications for support they receive. In the meantime, local media outlets were struggling to cover their working costs.

In this situation, RSF media support fund is more relevant than ever: the agility of the fund enables it to provide a quick answer to media outlets which need emergency financial support to keep documenting the local situation.

Through its media support fund, RSF has helped 30 Ukrainian media to continue operating and covering the war despite the safety and financial challenges they are facing.

The fund can be used, under strict conditions, to cover costs related to:

relocation and safety of the teams;
purchase of safety and professional equipment to keep working
rent and salaries ;
the development of a short term project (investigation, reportage, web documentary…).

This fund can not be used to create new media. It cannot be used by media facing a long term financial crisis, with no financial visibility.

All requests should be submitted to [email protected].

Further information and publications

Investigations:

How Ukrainian journalist Maks Levin was executed by Russian Forces :
- Report in English, French, Ukrainian, Russian
- Film on Arte (French and German), and Youtube (English and Ukrainian)
The Malkevich Propaganda Machine, the Wagner-allied network in Ukraine