Ukraine’s largest Telegram channels habitually post shocking photos and clips from Russian shelling sites, violating the victims’ right to privacy and the principles of ethical reporting, a July 2026 study by the Institute of Mass Information (IMI) showed.
IMI researchers found that Telegram channels with subscriber counts exceeding one million share close-up footage of the dead and wounded, photos of dismembered bodies as well as of people in a state of vulnerability. Some of the content may bear the channel’s watermarks, effectively turning human tragedy into an engagement farming tool.
“For many large Telegram channels, human tragedy has become a resource for attracting more audience. In the pursuit of views, the content makers at channels with millions of subscribers often disregard the principles of human-centric reporting, the right to privacy, human dignity, and ethical journalism. Sharing such sensitive content may cause the survivors and victims’ families additional pain, and it normalises the consumption of shock content among Ukrainians,” said the author of the study, Yana Mashkova.
The study also points out the violations of the right to privacy of people hiding in shelters during Russian strikes. Photos and footage posted for millions of subscribers to see feature their faces without their consent.
Mashkova believes that such material being posted without people’s consent in moments of acute stress is a problem in its own right.
“People who are living through the consequences of Russian air strikes can not give meaningful consent to being filmed. Using such footage to get views is a violation of professional ethics and an act of contempt for human dignity,” said Yana Mashkova.
IMI stresses that socially important information can be reported without demonstrating the most shocking details and without violating the victims’ privacy.
Moreover, IMI recommends using professional advice for media workers covering sensitive topics:
- How to post traumatic content responsibly
- Media coverage of deaths. How do you report this correctly?
The monitoring study included 20 Telegram channels that have over 1 million subscribers in Ukraine, according to Telemetrio. Namely: Trukha⚡Ukraine, Times of Ukraine: News | Ukraine, INSIDER UA | Ukraine | News, Lachen Writes, Real War | Ukraine | News, Ukraine Online: News | Politics, Real Kyiv | Ukraine, NOVYNA 🇺🇦, Ukraine Now | UN: News, Politics, Ukraine 24/7 – News, UAF Insider, Attorney at Law (Advokat Prava), News: Ukraine | Main, Kyiv INFO | News Ukraine 🇺🇦, Trident 🔱, Ukrainian Telegram 🇺🇦, All-Seeing EYE: Ukraine, Real Ukraine | Air Alert Radar 🇺🇦, Telegram News Service – Ukraine, UKR INFORM 🇺🇦 News Ukraine.
