Thread by @DietmarPichler1

What journalists and hosts got wrong about #Ukraine and Russian aggression since 2014 (thread)🧵

Russian disinformation is not only one of many tools of the Kremlin's policy. When diplomats speak, they tell target group adjusted messages -->media needs to debunk them instantly

"Neutrality". There is no neutrality towards the truth in journalism. The problem is that many hosts and journalists are not able to debunk Russian false narratives. Some positions by the Russian Federation are obviously absurd, others are believed by many.

Language situation: Pres. Zelenskyy is from a Russian speaking region, and his TV series (like many other shows) were mostly in Russian,
The Russian language is common in Ukraine and in Kyiv too. However, many people in the West still believe Russian claims that it is forbidden.

For instance, on Austrian TV guests claimed several times that "Russian is forbidden in Ukraine", but the host did not react. During panel discussions, another guest could debunk the false claim, but for the viewer, it seems like "two opinions" ---> #FalseBalance

Even many (opposition) citizens from the Russian Federation moved to Ukraine, but almost no journalist pointed out that fact as a response to Russian diplomats and politicians.

In 2014, Russian officials claimed there was a "threat to Russian speaking people" in Crimea to justify the annexation. In the example of many regions of Ukraine, we can see that this statement was invented and false --> Media needs to highlight that fact

Only experts should host a panel discussion or interview, not popular hosts who have no clue about Ukraine.

As long as hosts or journalists answer Russian diplomats with "...but do you think the last 8 years in Donbas justify a full-scale invasion" we have a problem...

Indeed, even the Russian version of the situation in Donbas would not justify a full-scale war, but it's not even close to the truth.

Russian nationalists & Russia triggered the imperialistic war in Donbas. They tried to create "Novorossiya" in 2014, but fortunately, they failed

Journalists missed monitoring of Russian media: The weeks before February 24th was dominated by Putin's
and Lavrov's diplomacy speeches and "negotiations", but in Russian media, you could already see what they really thought about Ukraine for years

In general, it is a lack of knowledge about actual life in the so-called "former Soviet Union" countries that are independent states for more than 3 decades. Russian propaganda is so effective because we are an easy target. Unfortunately, this applies to many journalists too

Ukraine, but also Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, Georgia, Poland were often shown as "Pawns" on a chess game between "Superpowers". Their legitimate interests were ignored, journalists kept their eyes on countries they know: USA, Russia and China. Some even blamed NATO

Russian officials expressed their "concerns" and "fears" about NATO, but almost nobody questioned the validity of their messages.

There are qualified journalists, but usually, they are working in the background,---> Russian #disinformation can still spread via OUR media

@olgatokariuk @Liza22Frank @olex_scherba @StimmeUkraine @NewsfeedUkraine @StopFakeDE @StopFakingNews @YekaterinaKoval @yevhenfedchenko @McFaul @_JakubJanda @vtchakarova @SimonOstrovsky @AlexKokcharov @KyivIndependent @KyivPost @VIEgoEU @PaneuropaKyiv @AHatsenko @Biz_Ukraine_Mag