Realna Hazeta, a news website formerly based in Luhansk, reported being targeted in a media attack by self-proclaimed war expert Dmytro Snehiryov.
In an article posted on on site.ua, Snehiryov made some false claims about Andriy Dikhtyarenko, Realna Hazeta chief editor and Suspilne host. In particular, the article implied that Dikhtyarenko, being an official, had been in contact with “LPR” paramilitaries at the onset of the war.
In response, journalist Yana Osadcha reported on Snehiryov’s work in Luhansk before the occupation of the city and on his participation in livestreams by the sanctioned media personality Oleksandr Shelest.
The team said that this was not the first time they had encountered such attacks: they had faced pressure from pro-Russian bloggers before.
In a comment to Institute of Mass Information representative Valentyna Troyan, Andriy Dikhtyarenko called the allegations baseless and stressed that he no longer worked as the Luhansk OMA spokesperson and could not have had any contact with the paramilitaries during the period in question.
The journalist added that Snehiryov’s allegations “could hardly be taken seriously,” given that the latter routinely joins livestreams by the pro-Russian blogger Shelest.
Dikhtyarenko stressed that the attacks targeted not just him personally, but also two media outlets, Realna Hazeta and Suspilne, which are on IMI’s High Quality List, with Realna Hazeta being featured on the Map of Recommended Media Outlets as well.
“We are very proud of this [inclusion on the List and the Map]. And now an expert of dubious reputation who is no stranger in pro-Russian social media groups, starts ‘peddling’ some very controversial claims, tries to attack us. Maybe there is something behind this. Maybe not,” Dikhtyarenko said.
He added that the team believed the situation could be part of a broader media campaign.
The team considers a public response outlining verified facts to be a sufficient defense against the allegations. “Let people read what he wrote, read what we have written about him based on facts, and draw their own conclusions,” the journalist added.