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the Kyiv Independent team
The Kyiv Independent was born out of a fight for freedom of speech. It was co-founded by a group of journalists who were fired from the Kyiv Post, then a prominent newspaper, as the owner attempted to take the newsroom under control and end its critical coverage of Ukrainian authorities.
Instead of giving up, the fired team founded a new media outlet to carry on the torch — and be a truly independent voice of Ukraine. Jnomics, an international media consultancy with Ukrainian roots, co-founded the publication, bringing their expertise in media management.
Just three months after the Kyiv Independent was launched, Russia invaded Ukraine. Our team stayed in Ukraine and kept on reporting on what was now a war against their country.
The team’s resilience and uncompromising reporting quickly made the Kyiv Independent a key source of news from Ukraine for millions of people around the world.
We vowed to serve the principles of honest journalism even during an ongoing war. We have published investigations, including into misconduct within the Ukrainian military. It has solidified our readers’ trust in us as an independent news source. The Kyiv Independent has won multiple awards for its work.
We had to grow fast. Today, the Kyiv Independent is a dynamic organization producing stories, video reports, podcasts, newsletters, documentaries, and more. In March 2023, one year after the start of the full-scale invasion, we formed a separate unit within the team to investigate Russian war crimes.
We are continuing to grow and learn. In a world where disinformation and propaganda are weapons of war, we aim to continue to be able to put up a good fight for truth.
We are a team of over 60 people, with most of them based in Kyiv, Ukraine. Some of our team members work remotely from North America and Europe.
Besides our regular reporting — including field reports and front-line coverage, and our sections for business, investigations, opinions, culture, and Explaining Ukraine — we also keep a continuously updated news feed on our website.
We currently have seven active newsletters: Ukraine Daily, Ukraine Weekly, War Notes, WTF is Wrong With Russia?, Belarus Weekly, Ukraine Business Roundup, and The Witness.
Our War Crimes Investigations Unit has already produced five investigative documentaries, shedding light on the human stories behind the war crimes Russia has committed in Ukraine since the start of the full-scale invasion, which number over 80,000, according to Ukrainian authorities.
We have a weekly video series, “Ukraine This Week”, which you can find on our YouTube channel. We also share our reporting on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Threads, Twitter (X), Telegram, LinkedIn, and Bluesky.
We believe that in order to preserve our independence we have to maintain financial sustainability and earn money for our work. The majority of our revenue comes from our readers. Membership and one-time donations keep us sustainable as a news organization and allow us to keep our journalism free and accessible to everyone. Kyiv Independent also makes money from advertising, syndication deals, book publishing, and other commercial activities. We also work with donor organizations and receive grants to support some of our editorial projects.
Your monthly support allows us to bring independent, locally-sourced news about Ukraine to the world. Membership and one-time donations keep us sustainable as a news organization and allow us to keep our journalism free and accessible to everyone. This model also allows us to connect and engage with our community of readers.
Our monthly or annual members get access to exclusive newsletters, events, direct communication with our staff, and many more benefits. You can learn more about exclusive benefits by reviewing our tiers or writing to us at [email protected].
There are two options when choosing how to support the Kyiv Independent. A single payment is just a one-time contribution — you will only be charged once, but you won’t receive membership benefits.
Membership is a monthly payment, with recurring billing, meaning you will be charged on the same day each month. By choosing this option, you will receive membership benefits. For example, our special weekly email blast with behind-the-scenes updates and recommended readings. Different tiers of membership come with different benefits.
You also have the option to join as a member with an annual payment. In this case, you will also receive membership benefits, but you will only be charged once a year on the date you signed up. Members who pay annually receive a 15% discount.
You can email anyone on the team personally (more information can be found here). If you would like to pitch a story or share important information, you can send us an email at [email protected]. We have a community server on Discord, offering an exclusive space for our members to connect directly with the team. You can ask us questions, reach out to specific team members, participate in polls, and share memes, tips, and information with other members. We also have channels set up for how to help Ukraine and regular Ukrainian classes. Certain tiers of membership such as Partners and Insiders also have one-on-one calls with our leadership. You can find more information on becoming a member here.
If you’re interested in working with the Kyiv Independent, we’re always looking to grow our team, and you can check out our current vacancies here.
If you’re interested in volunteering, you can fill out this form with details about your experience and what you’d like to volunteer for, and if we need your skillset, we’ll be in touch.
If you would like to report a type or a factual mistake in our reporting, please send us an email at [email protected].