Suspilne Dnipro journalist, Unpacking project host Inna Lysak faced a wave of hateful comments and social media attacks after the release of her interview with Fedor Zinchenko, the father of Vyacheslav Zinchenko, who is accused of murdering Iryna Farion.
Inna Lysak spoke about the incident with Kateryna Lysiuk, the Institute of Mass Information representative in Dnipropetrovsk oblast.
The interview with Fedor Zinchenko was posted on Suspilne Dnipro’s YouTube channel on 27 May and yielded many negative comments and insults both under the video and the journalist’s post on her personal Facebook page.
A shot from Inna Lysak’s interview with Vyacheslav Zinchenko’s father. Screenshot from Suspilne Dnipro by IMI
“[I got criticised] simply for talking to the father of the defendant, whose guilt has not yet been proven in court. For some reason for many commentators it was triggering and proved that the journalist worked for a political party or was ‘on Moscow’s payroll’ in general. Oddly enough, fierce adversaries, representatives of different camps, painted mirroring pictures. Those who consider Vyacheslav Zinchenko Iryna Farion’s murderer, and those who do not believe in the official version,” said Inna Lysak.
The journalist believes that the interview with Fedor Zinchenko is of public interest and filming it was an important step for the media conversation.
“We are used to talking about freedom of speech as a matter of fact. But in practice, it turns out that we only support it as long as we agree with the view expressed. As soon as an opinion emerges that outrages us or contradicts our beliefs, there is a temptation not to argue with it but to ban its expression altogether. This is essentially what I saw after our interview was released,” the journalist said.
She stressed that the defendant’s father had the right to express his position at least until the court passed the final ruling in the case.
“First, the father laid down his arguments: why he believes that it was not his son who killed Iryna Farion. And on paper, he has every right to do so. At least until the court passes its legal verdict. Secondly, in this interview, the father talked a lot about his worldview and, accordingly, about the worldview his son was raised in. Our team thought that this was very important to hear in order to understand what the case was about,” Lysak said.
Iryna Farion’s murder
Linguist and public figure Iryna Farion died in a hospital following an attempt on her life on 19 July 2024. Iryna Farion was buried on 22 July at the Lychakiv Cemetery in Lviv.
On 25 July 2024, the police detained the suspect in her murder, Vyacheslav Zinchenko, and the court remanded him in custody.
On 25 December 2024, the police changed the case’s qualification and submitted the indictment to court.
The defendant is charged with willful murder of a person in relation to that person’s public functions motivated by nation-based intolerance (clauses 8 and 14, part 2, Article 115 of the Criminal Code) and illegal handling of weapons, ammunition, or explosives (part 1, Article 263). He faces life imprisonment.
The Shevchenkivskyi Court of Lviv postponed hearings twice (on 1 and 4 May 2026) due to the failure of the defendant’s new attorney, Larysa Kryvoruchko, to appear in court.
On 5 May, the court dismissed the attorney’s motion to disqualify the secretary and the panel of judges, but gave the defense two weeks to review the case files. On 6 May 2026, Larysa Kryvoruchko warned journalists and public activists of potential legal liability for filming and sharing her private conversations in court.