29.4% of surveyed media professionals based in Kyiv city and Kyiv oblast were considering a temporary move for the winter due to the shelling and potential long blackouts or heating outages. This is almost four times more than the figure among journalists in other regions of Ukraine (7.8%).

These are the findings of a study by the Institute of Mass Information focusing on Ukrainian journalists’ resilience ahead of winter 2026–2027. The survey covered 265 media professionals based in 23 oblasts of Ukraine and in Kyiv city and was carried out during the period from 21 September to 7 October 2026.

Overall, 51.3% of respondents did not rule out relocating, but only 17.4% were already considering it. Another 34% did not plan to move but admitted they might change their minds depending on future developments.

READ MORE:

Kyiv prepares for winter hardship, frontline regions prepare for evacuation

The study revealed significant regional variation in media professionals’ willingness to relocate.

Relocation was not ruled out by:

  • 68.1% of respondents in frontline- and border-adjacent regions;
  • 64.7% in Kyiv city and Kyiv oblast;
  • 39.7% in central Ukraine and Odesa oblast;
  • 16.3% in western regions.

The reasons and scenarios for potential relocation differed.

In Kyiv city and oblast, there was a particularly visible interest in a temporary move in winter, linked to the threat of air strikes and problems with electricity and heating systems.

By contrast, 12 respondents, 11 of whom worked in frontline- or border-adjacent regions, considered evacuation from a dangerous location close to combat.

Readiness to relocate was the lowest in western Ukraine. Only 16.3% of respondents did not rule out such a scenario, and none of the 49 respondents in western regions chose the option of a temporary move for the winter.

READ MORE:

Most of those who have chosen a destination plan to stay in Ukraine

Among the 136 respondents who did not rule out relocating:

  • 41.2% were considering moving to another region within Ukraine;
  • 30.1% had not yet decided on a destination;
  • 15.4% were considering moving abroad;
  • 11.8% were thinking about moving to a village or a smaller town in their own oblast;
  • 1.5% had another option in mind (e.g. moving to a more peaceful neighbourhood of the same city) or did not answer.

This suggests that the biggest risk for newsrooms lies not so much in losing staff to emigration as in the likelihood of teams being scattered across different towns and cities in Ukraine.

Almost a third of media professionals who did not rule out relocating were unsure where they would go. This creates a risk of decisions made under strain if the safety or energy situation escalates.

The IMI study points to the need to prepare newsrooms for working as distributed teams in advance: ensuring remote access to work systems, backup power supply, backup communication channels and plans for continued work if the team relocates.

The key takeaway: Ukrainian media professionals are preparing for various relocation scenarios ranging from evacuation from dangerous areas to a temporary winter move prompted by risks to basic living conditions. Newsroom resilience will therefore increasingly depend on the ability to keep working regardless of where the team is located physically.

Note. The study is based on an anonymous targeted survey of 265 media professionals based in 23 regions of Ukraine and in Kyiv city. The survey was carried out in the period from 21 September to 7 October 2026. The maximum margin of error for the full sample is ±5.6 percentage points. The questionnaire did not measure the actual number of hours equipment can run autonomously.