Institute of Mass Information (IMI)

The study, which covered 2025 and 2026, showed that Ukraine’s media sector is in a state of permanent struggle for survival.

The Civil Code could provide authorities and companies “with an unprecedented legal arsenal to crack down on inconvenient investigations and journalism as a whole.”

IMI’s data showed that Russia has been using pseudo-legal mechanisms to target not just Ukrainian journalists, but also nationals of other countries who were reporting on the war in Ukraine.

They considered such actions as pressure on the media outlet and an attempt to limit the dissemination of socially important information.

Viktoria Roshchyna, who died in Russian custody in 2024, repeatedly insisted on seeing a psychotherapist while imprisoned, and was repeatedly placed in solitary confinement. There is strong evidence that she was tortured.

Iryna Danylovych has lost the hearing in one ear and suffers from constant headaches due to denial of adequate medical care. Her family says that she is under intense psychological pressure and that her morale is very low.

Russian authorities claim Balinskyi’s work is “espionage” and “sabotage”. He has been charged in absentia with “spreading disinformation about the Russian armed forces” and “damaging military memorials”.

The most commonly identified threat was Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, followed by the President’s Office and anonymous Telegram channels.