Some online media manipulated with coverage of Medvedchuk's case, - IMI research
Some Ukrainian online media outlets employed manipulative news while covering of the criminal case of Viktor Medvedchuk, a MP from the OPFL.
Such is the conclusion of the IMI monitoring study “Censorship and Manipulation. Medvedchuk's case in the Ukrainian media landscape”.
The sample covered 10 sites *: five online editions among the top ones in terms of hits (TSN.ua, "Ukrayinska Pravda", "Censor", "Kanal 24", "Obozrevatel") and five others, which had been published political jeansa, as it was revealed by IMI’s previous monitoring studies ("Strana", "Segodnya", "Pryamyy", "Podrobnosti", 112ua.tv).
The study revealed signs of censorship on the sites 112ua.tv and "Pryamyy". And also several manipulations on the sites 112ua.tv, "Strana", "Podrobnosti", "Segodnya", "Obozrevatel", "Kanal 24".
Among the political manipulations surrounding the case of MPs Viktor Medvedchuk and Taras Kozak, three main categories could be identified:
1) giving the criminal process a political overtone by means of allegations of political repression of Ukraine’s main opposition figures;
2) discrediting the evidence base in the case and the conditions for charging Medvedchuk;
3) manipulations around coverage of pre-trial restrictions for Medvedchuk.
* The monitoring study on the coverage by online media of Medvedchuk's case the Institute of Mass Information held included ten sites: segodnya.ua, prm.ua, strana.ua, podrobnosti.ua, obozrevatel.com, 24tv.ua, pravda.com.ua, 112ua.tv , tsn.ua, censor.net. The news on "Medvedchuk's case" that these websites have been publishing during the period of May 11-13, 2021, were analyzed for political manipulations.
This study was made possible by the support of the American people through the USAID Media Program in Ukraine, implemented by the international organization Internews Network. The contents are the sole responsibility of the Institute for Mass Information and do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID, the US Government or the Internews Network.
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