In the second half of 2025, the following news websites made it into the List of Transparent and Responsible Media Outlets, also known as the High Quality List:
- Suspilne Novyny
- Espreso
- Babel
- Ukrainska Pravda
- Radio Liberty
- hromadske
- ZN,UA
- Texty
- LB.ua
- Ukrinform
- Graty
- Hromadske Radio
- Ukrainskyi Tyzhden
- Rubryka
- Slovo i Dilo
- Novynarnia
- Frontliner
These are the results of the two-stage in-depth monitoring of online media by the Institute of Mass Information (IMI). The assessment covers transparency, integrity, adherence to journalistic standards, and clear labeling of advertising.
Several news outlets were featured on the List for the first time:
- LB.ua (specialises in covering social and political news);
- Frontliner (news outlet about Russia’s war on Ukraine, produces reportages and articles about servicemembers and civilians);
- Novynarnia (reports on the war with Russia, servicemembers, veterans, covers IDP issues);
- Rubryka (solutions journalism outlet).
Ukrinform has re-joined the List after a long pause, having improved their balance of coverage and demonstrated an attitude of responsibility towards their audience.
The List of Transparent and Responsible Media Outlets
Read the methodology for the study here.
In the first stage of the study, 50 leading Ukrainian news websites, selected based on previous monitoring by IMI as well as data sourced from SimilarWeb and Gemius, are screened for manipulation, fake news, and negative campaigning.
In the second stage, the news outlets that passed the first stage are analysed in terms of the following criteria: standards of balance, reliability, distinction between facts and commentary; the presence of covert political promotion, sexism and hate speech, harmful content; as well as transparency, i.e. whether a website features a list of contacts and the editorial policy and whether the media outlet is transparent about their owners.
The average level of adherence to professional standards by resources featured in the High Quality List is about 96%. This means that the news outlets published no covert political advertising (although some material featuring improperly labeled ads was observed), hate speech, sexism, or fake news on their main news feeds.
The Institute of Mass Information (IMI) is a civil society organization specializing in the media, operating since 1996. IMI defends the rights of journalists, studies the media landscape and reports on media-related events, fights propaganda and disinformation, and provides media workers with safety equipment for trips to combat areas (since the start of the Russo–Ukrainian war in 2014).
IMI carries out the only monitoring study of freedom of speech in Ukraine, keeps a list of transparent and responsible online media outlets, and tracks Russia’s media crimes in the war on Ukraine. IMI has representatives in 20 oblasts of Ukraine and runs a network of Media Hubs that provide journalists with unfailing support. IMI’s partners include Reporters Without Borders (RSF); the organization is also a member of the International Freedom of Expression Exchange (IFEX).
