Newsmax, conservative US network, launching Ukraine news channel
U.S. media company Newsmax is launching a local news channel in Ukraine, scheduled to begin operations this spring, Forbes Ukraine reported on Feb. 9, citing a company statement.
The network, described as a conservative, right-wing outlet founded by Chris Ruddy, a close ally of U.S. President Donald Trump, will open a full-fledged editorial office in Kyiv to produce local and regional news content for television and digital platforms.
Newsmax Ukraine plans to provide coverage in Ukrainian, English, and Russian, depending on the platform and audiences. In December, the media company announced a brand licensing agreement to launch a local channel in Ukraine as part of broader expansion across Europe and the eastern Mediterranean.
The news comes shortly after the Washington Post, one of the U.S.'s most prestigious media outlets, owned by oligarch Jeff Bezos, shuttered its Kyiv bureau amid a mass layoff hitting about 30% of the staff.
Liudmyla Nemyriia, a Ukrainian journalist and media manager, will be Newsmax Ukraine's general producer responsible for development strategy and editorial policy. She holds a 15% stake in the Teleradiocompany Newsmax Ukraine LLC, which owns the Newsmax Ukraine brand.
Nemyriia is the host of the NemyriaLive YouTube channel with over 160,000 subscribers and the wife of Hryhorii Nemyriia, a lawmaker for Yuliia Tymoshenko's Batkivshchyna (Fatherland) party.
According to the journalist, Newsmax Ukraine's aim will be to help audiences in Ukraine and the U.S. better understand each other's perspectives, Forbes reported.
Newsmax, which has positioned itself as an alternative to its right-wing media rival, Fox News, faced financial difficulties last year, despite modest revenue growth. Surging expenses led to the company's net loss widening to $97 million in the first nine months of 2025.
