How can they show the truth to the world without playing into the enemy’s hands? How should they interact with the military? How can they avoid harming their audience with their content? These questions were discussed during the panel “Interaction Between Journalists and the Military: Special Dimensions, Experience, and Risks in 2024.”
Sharing advice and practical cases were Khrystyna Havryliuk, Chief Producer of Suspilne; Francis Farrell, War Correspondent at Kyiv Independent; Oleksandr Matyushenko, Journalist at TRC MART; and Serhii Cherevatyi, General Director of Ukrinform.
“Everything we’ve learned over these years couldn’t have been taught in any school. It’s important to have a lot of patience, especially if you plan to be a war reporter. The most crucial thing is to maintain a connection with the military. This should be done not only when you need something from them but also when they need something from you. After all, you can’t work in the field with them if you don’t treat them as people,” said Khrystyna Havryliuk.
“We learned on the go. There were many mistakes, moments when you realize that next time you’ll definitely do things differently. It’s crucial to have the commander’s trust, as it allows you to organize truly great work. If you only rely on press officers, you’ll get minimal information. It’s important to be on the ground because that’s where human trust is built,” said Francis Farrell.
“The year 2022 forced everyone to become war journalists. We had to acquire basic knowledge of war journalism during the conditions of a full-scale invasion,” noted Oleksandr Matiushenko.
“We are now forming a strong school of war correspondents and press secretaries. We still need to work on ensuring that brigade commanders understand that the press is essential; otherwise, no one will know what’s really happening,” said Serhii Cherevatyi.
