Journalists do not always speak up about threats, pressure, or obstruction of their reporting, either because they do not believe that contacting the police will yield any result or because they do not want to spend time on it. However, it is important not to stay silent about such cases but to document them, cover them publicly, and report them to law enforcement, said Nadia Kucher, the Institute of Mass Information’s representative in Poltava oblast, during a discussion on investigative journalism in Poltava on 4 October.
“Journalists often decide not to waste their time and don’t go to the police, and don’t even write about threats or pressure on their social media or in the outlets they work with, because they don’t believe such appeals will be effective. But in reality, it’s very important that you do not stay silent if you face threats or obstruction or pressure, and instead file a statement with the police or document the incident in some other way,” Nadia Kucher said.
READ MORE
- Obstruction of reporting spikes in Ukraine as cases rarely reach court
- More press freedom violations recorded in Ukraine in 8 months of 2026 than in entire 2025
Kucher said that without publicity, such cases are tolerated and the number of violations only grows.
Nadia Kucher said that IMI had recorded eight press freedom violations unelated to the Russo–Ukrainian war in September 2026. These included restrictions on journalists’ access to information, obstruction of reporting, and online harassment.
The violations were recorded in Kyiv city and in Chernihiv, Rivne, Vinnytsia, and Chernivtsi oblasts.
“Poltava oblast wasn’t on the list of regions where journalists’ rights were violated in September. But that doesn’t mean no violations happened. They either occurred earlier and are recorded in IMI’s Freedom of Speech Barometer, or journalists didn’t report them or speak out about obstruction or pressure for one reason or another,” the IMI representative remarked.
What to do if you faced pressure as a journalist
Nadia Kucher advises journalists who have faced threats, pressure, obstruction of their reporting, or cyberbullying, to document the violations, speak out about them publicly, and report them to the police.
Journalists can also contact IMI for a free consultation with a lawyer.
Access legal assistance by:
- filling out this form to contact IMI’s media lawyers;
- writing to [email protected];
- calling the IMI hotline at (050) 447-70-63 on business days from 10am to 6pm.