Tkachenko about formerly pro-Russian TV hosts: they are showing patriotic work during the war

Oleksandr Tkachenko, Minister of Culture and Information Policy, considers criticism of former pro-Russian TV host currently participating in the telethon to be irrelevant. He said this in his interview with Radio Liberty.

"Regarding the participation of certain journalists. I don't want to defend anyone in any way, but many of the criticisms that have been made about certain hosts have not been relevant for at least two or three years. They left their jobs on Medvedchuk's channels or others quite a while ago. There may be different opinions regarding these journalists' attitudes to what they did before, but at least during the war, they are showing absolutely adequate, professional, patriotic work, and they work in mass media that are largely not dubious," Tkachenko commented.

As IMI reported, on May 12, Ukrainian journalists and human rights groups called for the exclusion of hosts who have previously played along with the enemy's rethoric and used to spread kremlin propaganda for many years. This is primarily about Vasyl Holovanov, Tigran Martirosyan, Natasha Vlashchenko, Tetyana Honcharova, Nazar Dovhyy, Volodymyr Poluyev, Anna Stepanets, Anastasia Dauhule.

On May 13, the Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine opposed the exclusion of pro-russian hosts from the telethons.

Media groups also stood up for the hosts. "Inter" TV channel stated that they had no doubts about the pro-Ukrainian civic stance of their host Anastasia Dauhule. Media Group Ukraine stated the same.

The address has been signed by over 326 journalists, media, NGOs and movements. 27 people from "Media Group Ukraine," in particular from Ukraine and Ukraine 24 channels, signed the appeal.