Support to Safety of Journalists, Media, and of Access to Information, including communication strategy for Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine

Back Stories about defenders, volunteers and Ukrainians who survived the occupation in Chernihiv Oblast. How Chernihiv.City creates content with the support of the Council of Europe

Stories about defenders, volunteers and Ukrainians who survived the occupation in Chernihiv Oblast. How Chernihiv.City creates content with the support of the Council of Europe

The Council of Europe provided the grant to the non-governmental organiіation “Agency of Local Media Development “ABO”, the founder of the regional online media Chernihiv.City, which currently covers the war and the consequences of the occupation in the city of Chernihiv and the Chernihiv region. This territory borders Russia and Belarus and at the beginning of a full-scale invasion in February-March 2022, it was the place of active hostilities, and partially occupied by the Russian military.

The grant was provided within the Council of Europe Immediate Actions Package/ Project “Support to Safety of Journalists, Media, and of Access to Information”. Funds are directed to:

Creation of daily news and analytical content by the Chernihiv.City team (texts, photos, videos) about the war and its consequences in the city of Chernihiv and Chernihiv region.
Creation by the Chernihiv.City team of analytical articles about the war on the territory of the city of Chernihiv and Chernihiv region for the special projects "Invasion", "They Wanted to Live", “People of streets”.
Distribution of content created by the Chernihiv.City team on media resources, including on social networks.

The main goal of the project is to document stories related to armed conflict and consequences of occupation on the territory of Chernihiv city and Chernihiv region; to raise awareness of the target audience about the crimes committed on the territory of Chernihiv region of Ukraine through quality content production.

"Financial support to Chernihiv.City is an opportunity to develop our online media in wartime conditions according to a new, higher-quality model and an opportunity to be a full-fledged participant in the information front. The site's editorial team works simultaneously in two directions – improving its own content and developing professionally," says Tetyana Zdor, editor-in-chief of Chernihiv.city.

As she says, during the period of implementation of the grant project, it became possible to:

Improve and provide daily information about events in the city of Chernihiv, the Chernihiv region and Ukraine – from the frontline, from the Chernihiv border, about the life and recovery of Chernihiv and the communities of Chernihiv Oblast after de-occupation, about other spheres of life support in wartime conditions.
Launch special projects: a series of video interviews "Life under siege" with eyewitnesses of the events of late February and early April, when the city was surrounded by Russian occupants; a series of testimonies "People of the Street" about alleged crimes of the Russian troops against the civilian population of Chernihiv city and nearby villages.
Collect and publish hundreds of inspiring stories about defenders from the front and about ordinary Ukrainians who don’t leave anyone indifferent. Among them there are stories about young volunteers from Chernihiv who collect money for the needs of the Armed Forces and thus join the defense of our country.
Expand the presence on social networks (Facebook and Telegram) and experiment with various interesting formats of content: infographics, caption videos, diverse selections, etc.

"In the conditions of a full-scale war for our region, which borders two aggressor countries – Russia and Belarus, grant support for the activities of such a media as our Chernihiv.City is extremely important in order to resist propaganda and build an independent editorial policy," Tatyana Zdor adds.

All materials created as part of the grant are available for viewing on the website Chernihiv.city.

Additional information: CSO “Agency of Local Media Development “ABO” established in 2017, is an agency of the local media network which unites more than 50 independent online media in different regions of Ukraine. Chernihiv.city is one of the ABO network media, launched only in 2021 but already got its website audience of 60 thousand views per month.

The Project “Support to Safety of Journalists, Media, and of Access to Information”, including communication strategy for the Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine is being implemented under Adjusted Priority Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022. It aims to support the Ukrainian media community in addressing current needs and consequences of the Russian aggression and war in Ukraine.

Follow the news of the Project on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/CoEUPSIS/.

Read more about the grantees of the Project:

KYIV, UKRAINE 8 DECEMBER 2022

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WHAT IS THE PROJECT ABOUT?

The Project “Support to Safety of Journalists, Media, and of Access to Information, including communication strategy for Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine” aims to support the Ukrainian media community in addressing current needs and consequences of the Russian aggression and war in Ukraine. It is implemented in the framework of Priority adjustment to the Council of Europe Action Plan for Ukraine 2018-2022.

The Project is built around four main measures:

Measure 1. Support the Ukrainian Audiovisual Regulator and National Public Broadcasting Company in enabling their capacities to function under the new circumstances;

Measure 2. Providing a HQ Hub for Media Support, Safety and Prevention of Information Disorder through information sharing/connecting to Council of Europe Platform for Protection of Journalism and Safety of Journalists alerts;

Measure 3. Support to the Ukrainian media and journalists’ organisations in informing public on war reporting while internally displaced or refugeed; and

Measure 4. Support the Prosecutor General’s Office on strategic communication (internal/external communications) to address newly emerging needs.

BUDGET AND TIMEFRAME OF THE PROJECT

The total budget of the Project amounts to EUR 390 000.

The Project is implemented by 31 December 2022.

PROJECT’S EXPECTED RESULTS

Enabled grants aimed at improving working conditions and governing systems during the times of war;
Provided standard advising on audiovisual regulating and broadcasting during times of war;
Reenforced capacity of media professionals during times of war;
Provided standard based advising and policy information on freedom of expression and Safety of Journalists in times of armed conflicts;
Enabled grants aimed at strengthening capacities to report and visibility;
Provided training and capacity building on war reporting and its consequences;
Provided information and tools on legal, social, and medical protection of Journalists;
Provided policy and technical advice on Strategic Communication to the Prosecutor General’s Office (OPG) of Ukraine;
Built capacity and made available tools on custom made communication for OPG and media actors/journalists.

PROJECT’S PARTNERS

The key partners of the Project are JSC “Public Broadcasting Company of Ukraine” (UA:PBC), National Television and Radio Broadcasting Council of Ukraine, Ministry of Culture and Information Policy of Ukraine, Parliamentary Committees on Humanitarian and Information Policy and on the Freedom of Speech, Prosecutor General’s Office in Ukraine, civil society organisations working in the sphere of media, relevant professional associations etc.