Behind the Scenes: The Kyiv Independent's August Digest

Welcome to the Kyiv Independent's August digest, where we share our news and talk about things that matter to us as a company.

Last month, Ukraine marked its 35th anniversary of independence. It's a celebratory time — streets and workplaces fill with people wearing vyshyvankas, a traditional embroidered shirt, and dedicated events are held across the country. It's also a time of remembrance, honoring everyone who fought and gave their lives for Ukraine's national freedom, for its independence, for its culture and language, and for its people's right to choose their own future.

This year, the round-number anniversary landed against the backdrop of Russia ramping up its aerial attacks and flooding cities closer to the front line with small killer drones that hunt regular people in the streets. It's also the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion that Ukraine has genuinely reckoned with a question that used to be off the table: could there be elections during wartime?

To dissect the difficult question, our team decided to film a debate, rather than write an editorial, between Editor-in-Chief Olga Rudenko and Deputy Chief Editor Oleksiy Sorokin. The two have opposing views and try to make sense of the moment together: this is really a glimpse into how our newsroom considers issues we cover regularly — it’s not a linear process, and we aren’t afraid of difficult conversations. Watch the episode here.

In light of Independence Day, as we continue to reflect on what that means for us internally, another episode worth your time is an episode of Ukraine This Week, where host Anna Belokur looked at 35 years of Ukrainian independence — and the centuries of Russian attempts to control, suppress, and ultimately deny that independence altogether. Russia, in other words, has never actually accepted it.

And one more video we’d like to highlight looks at what life is actually like for Ukrainians living under Russian occupation —  where there's no place for celebrating Ukraine's independence. In 'How a Ukrainian escaped Russian occupation — twice,’ our reporter Yulia Taradiuk spoke with Dmytro Kruk, who grew up under occupation in Donetsk Oblast and, as the title implies, escaped it twice. In this interview, he describes forced Russian mobilization, passportization, propaganda, and the FSB filtration he endured while leaving the occupied territories. It's one person's story, but it reflects a much bigger pattern — and a reminder of exactly what independence protects people from.

In other media

A complicated political environment and repeated attacks require a lot of unpacking, and we were there to offer a view from the ground and help our colleagues in international media make sense of it all.

Our Chief Editor Olga Rudenko spoke with Zetland about protests in Ukraine in response to the dismissal of the popular defense minister, and how democracy continues during war. Our political reporter Oleg Sukhov spoke with one of the oldest listener-supported radio stations in Italy, Radio Popolare, about the current phase of the war and how people and journalists alike have adjusted to it.

This month, we also found ourselves as cover stars of the Editor & Publisher, a legacy U.S. outlet covering the news and media industries since 1884. Elsa Court, our audience development manager, and Yana Zhuryk, senior membership growth manager, spoke with Bob Miller, a journalist for the E&P, about what it means to be a newsroom living through war.

You can read the full article on their site via the link.

The Kyiv Independent on the cover of Editor & Publisher, August issue, 2026 (Courtesy of Editor & Publisher)

You might have heard Francis Farrell on The Telegraph’s Ukraine The Latest podcast in conversation with Dominic Nicholls, the podcast co-host, about his latest trips to the embattled Donbas cities of Sloviansk, Kramatorsk and Kostiantynivka, where he covered front-line developments.

The Kyiv Independent at events

A quick reminder that we're coming to London to speak about our independent journalism. On Oct. 2, we're holding a live event at Kings Place, with Editor-in-Chief Olga Rudenko hosting live storytelling from CEO Daryna Shevchenko and reporters Francis Farrell, Dominic Culverwell, and Olena Zashko, alongside a curated photo exhibition, an audience Q&A, and a meet-the-team reception. If you haven't already, book your tickets here — a livestream option is also available for those who can't join us in person.

Traveling to Denmark, our COO Zakhar Protsiuk co-hosted an event together with our partner, the Danish outlet Altinget. There, we screened Francis Farrell and Olena Zashko's front-line reporting, '24 hours under glide bombs in Dobropillia.'

While there, Zakhar also held a community meeting with our members in Denmark. These kinds of gatherings are available exclusively to our members. We always try to find ways to connect with our community wherever we go, so if you'd like an invitation the next time we're in your city, consider becoming a member.

Special recognition

The connection we build with our community has been recognized by the Online Media Journalism Award, for which we are shortlisted for innovations in reader revenue strategy. We’re proud to sustain our independent journalism and expand it every year — all of which is possible thanks to the readers who decide to support us.

Show your support

If you're looking for another way to stand with Ukraine, we've got you covered with wearable merch to celebrate independence. Our store offers clothing, accessories, and home goods that let you make a visible statement of solidarity while supporting independent journalism at the same time — from a collection built around the trident, a symbol that has represented Ukraine for a thousand years, to a T-shirt insisting on the country's full 603,628 km². Check out our full collections here.
Thank you for reading. As always, there's a lot happening behind the scenes at the Kyiv Independent, and we're glad to have a way to bring you along for more of it. We'll keep sharing these updates every month, and we'd love to hear what you'd like to see more of.
If you're a member of the press looking to connect with us, email us at press@kyivindependent.com.