Yesterday morning I opened an email from the Kyiv Independent’s Counteroffensive newsletter written by the journalist Tim Mak. He put concisely what many of us who follow the war of Russian aggression in Ukraine already knew, the systematic targeting of civilian infrastructure and power facilities is degrading the ability for Ukraine to supply electricity to it’s citizens. Journalists are writing from apartments, cafes, and shops run by electric generators to keep their lights, laptops, routers, and wifi operating so they may report from Ukraine about what is really going on in the cities and frontlines of the battle for democracy and sovereignty from an imperialist blood thirsty Russia.
This is not an easy job even with full access to electricity and electronics as Russia specifically targets journalists and no location is safe from attack. The National Union of Journalists of Ukraine created a List of journalists killed (91 media members) since start of Russia’s full-scale aggression
Tim Mak and other Ukrainian journalists are requesting subscriptions to their news outlets to help buy electric generators and I think this community and others may be well equipped to help, here is a direct link to the Kyiv Independent’s Counteroffensive subscription link: The Counteroffensive with Tim Mak A war correspondent's open notebook, reporting live from Kyiv. Compelling human stories that illustrate what’s happening during the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and elsewhere on the frontlines for democracy. Issues twice a week!
The Kyiv Post, The Euromaidan Press, and many other news organizations in Ukraine also need support. The ability for Ukraine to remain free is being fought by it’s brave people, but their journalists are the one’s who help us understand what is happening and that is necessary as much of big media in the United States is sadly aligned with agendas contrary to Democracy and Ukraine’s (our) interests.
In Mak’s own words:
We’re at a turning point in both the war in Ukraine, and for the publication. When we launched last year, we were greeted with a wave of enthusiasm. But now we’ve faced a wave of cancellations at our one year mark, and we’ve got an uphill battle to stay afloat. Ukraine is in a similar position, fighting against world fatigue of the war here. I firmly believe that we’re at a time where we need the human-centered journalism of The Counteroffensive more than ever. All of these stories look at Ukraine more holistically than any other news outlet, and makes the news feel more immersive and personal.
As long as I have your blessing to continue, we’ll be here writing, reporting, interviewing — and trying to make this war as real as possible for people far away. If you have any thoughts, comments or suggestions, reply to this email or shoot me a note at tim@counteroffensive.news.
Thank you as always for reading The Counteroffensive.
Sincerely,
Tim