The financial situation of 74% of journalists has worsened since the start of the invasion – IMI survey

In half a year of the full-scale war in Ukraine, journalists' financial situation has significantly deteriorated. 74% of the media workers from all regions of Ukraine whom IMI interviewed have noted this. These are the results of an anonymous targeted survey conducted by the Institute of Mass Information in August 2022, in which 217 journalists from all regions of Ukraine took part*.

For comparison: even in 2020, with the lockdown and the coronavirus crisis, only 22% of journalists reported that their financial situation had worsened. The trend towards a deteriorating financial situation continued in 2021, when 41.5% reported a financial decline.

According to the IMI survey, only 18% of the interviewed journalists have not seen a change in their financial situation in half a year since the start of the full-scale russian invasion. Only 8% of the respondents reported an improvement in their financial situation 2022. We assume that the increase in income may be due to the high demand for fixers and work for foreign media – at least, some of the interviewed journalists stated this directly.

At the same time, the IMI survey shows that 86% of journalists expect to find themselves in an even more difficult financial situation in 2023.

This trend is also illustrated journalists' inability to save up money this year (reported by 82% of the respondents), another 58% of the respondents noted that they no longer have a financial cushion. 67% of Ukrainian media workers surveyed by IMI point to a hike in expenses.

Most often, the monthly income from journalistic work ranges from UAH 5 to 10 thousand (35%) and from UAH 10 to 20 thousand (31%). 17% earn less than UAH 5,000. The lowest percentages are within the range of UAH 20–30 thousand (7%), over UAH 30 thousand (6%), and over UAH 50 thousand (3%).

*The research was carried out through an anonymous online survey based on an interactive structured questionnaire. Links to the questionnaire were sent out to potential respondents – journalists and editors. A total of 230 responses were received, of which 13 respondents do not work in the media/journalism field, so the analysis included 217 responses from media workers. 29% of the respondents are from the central regions of Ukraine, 21% are from the south, 19% are from the west, 12% are from the north, 11% are from the east and 8% are from Kyiv city. 64% are women, 35% are men, 1% other genders. The survey was conducted in August 2022.