Zelenskyy and russian propagandist Ovsyannikova to receive German Media Freedom Award

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanowskaya, and a former editor of russian propaganda channel "Pervyy" Marina Ovsyannikova will receive a prize from the German Weimer Media Group (WMG) – the Media Freedom Award, DW reports. 

This year's award is dedicated to the fight for freedom in Eastern Europe, the media group stated on April 21.

The award ceremony is to be held on April 22 during the WMG-organized summit dedicated to Ludwig Erhard's memory, taking place in Gmund am Tegernsee municipality, Bavaria federal state. The head of the European People's Party in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber, is expected to conduct the ceremony.

"Ukrainians, Belarusians, and russians are at the forefront of this fight against evil, against war and tyranny in Eastern Europe, and are bravely defending not only their but also our freedom. With their words, their actions, their courage, and their lives," the jury's explanation states.

This year is the eighth Media Freedom Award season. The prize is being given to public figures who, according to the jury, are especially supportive of freedom of expression, social interaction, political dialogue, and democracy. Among the award's laureates is Austrian ex-chansellor Sebastian Kurtz, USSR president Mikhail Gorbachev, and German Finance Minister Christian Lindner.

As IMI has reported, German media outlet Die Welt has hired the former editor of russian propaganda channel "Pervyy" Marina Ovsyannikova who "protested" the russian invasion of Ukraine on alleged live broadcast.

In the beginning of March, Ovsyannikova entered the studio during an allegedly live "Vremya" broadcast with a "No war" poster. The video recording of this part of the broadcast has been uploaded to YouTube. Later, the russian quit her work at the propaganda channel.

The Centre for Strategic Communications and Information Security has reported that Ovsyannikova is currently an active asset in russian informational and psychological operations. Namely, she has gained recognition and credibility in the West and is using it to promote the narrative about the "necessity" of lifting the sanctions to Western audience.

On April 14, Ukrainian activists in Berlin demanded that Die Welt media group fires the former editor of russian propaganda channel "Pervyy" Marina Ovsyannikova.