Experts say the amount of paid-for “news” articles appearing in Ukrainian media is on the rise as politicians try to gain favor with voters ahead of the autumn parliamentary elections.
As an example, one report cited is a broadcast that aired Dec. 24 on 1+1 television channel featuring politician Oles Dovhiy. Pegged to New Year’s parties, the report singled out Dovhiy dressed as Santa Claus, entertaining and giving gifts to children. The report also included a short interview with his wife, the daughter of a pro-presidential lawmaker.
Dovhiy, a former speaker of Kyiv’s city council, is reportedly aiming to win a seat in Ukraine’s parliament through a single mandate contest and is, as a result, campaigning hard to win favor of voters in Kyiv.
Dovhiy denied paying for positive news coverage, when asked by the Kyiv Post. But “this obviously seems to be paid-for reporting.” countered Otar Dovzhenko, a media expert who monitors TV news for media watchdog Telekritika, referring to the 1+1 report focused on Dovhiy.
1+1 denies that it accepts money for news stories. “But we cannot not show politicians,” said head of news department Serhiy Popov.
Whatever the case, media watchers say paid-for news coverage is clearly on the rise in Ukraine.
According to the Kyiv-based Institute of Mass Information, a media watchdog, the amount of obviously paid-for stories in print media doubled in December compared to September 2011. About 36 paid-for stories in major newspapers distributed nationwide were detected by the institute in December, but the actual number is believed to be much higher.
The institute explains the increase as related to the New Year holidays and politicians unofficial launch of their election campaigns.
Accusations of brokering positive press have also spread to aspiring politician Natalia Korolevska, currently a lawmaker in the opposition Bloc of Yulia Tymoshenko faction.
In a clash with management over alleged censorship, editorial staff at one of Ukraine’s leading daily newspapers, Segodnya, alleged that they were told by a superior to only report positive news about Korolevska.
Chief Executive Officer Olena Hromnytska, who resigned on Jan. 17, has denied the accusations. Korolevska denied asking for or paying for positive coverage and said that Segodyna newspaper is always critical of her because it is pro-Party of Regions and she is a member of the opposition Bloc of Yulia Tymoshenko.
Inserting a positive paragraph about a politician into an otherwise fair story is one of the delicate ways that political PR is accomplished in Ukrainian media, experts say.
According to three journalists in two different print and web media who spoke to the Kyiv Post on conditions of anonymity, they were approached on numerous occasions by politicians’ PR managers, who offered $800-$1,000 for “a paragraph with positive mention of the politician or his comment.”
ViktoriyaSyumar, director of the Kyiv-based Institute of Mass Information, says other methods are employed.
“A more brutal strategy involves running a purely PR-ish interview or fake news piece without it being marked as PR. This might be either paid for, or a result of personal relations with a media owner or editor,” Syumar said.
Political PR consultants say Ukrainian politicians spend up to 50 percent of their campaign budget purchasing positive coverage in media.
“On TV it is usually the news desk chiefs who accept the money. In print or web, if it is a story with a [hidden advertising] message, it usually is paid to the journalist. Editors take money for PR texts without indicating it is PR,” said a leading PR consultant who works with several pro-government politicians and spoke to the Kyiv Post on condition of anonymity so as not to compromise his clients.
The “package deals” are always cheaper than buying separate coverage, he added.
Paid-for news coverage is not as effective as many politicians hope, however. According to a recent Institute of Mass Information study, around 70 percent of voters recognize a paid-for story from an objective news piece.
“However, to just pay and get a rosy picture is much easier work for both politicians and their PR consultants, compared to building an effective media strategy. This shows how primitive is the thinking of most politicians and consultants in Ukraine,” Syumar said.
Some magazines, according to Syumar, appear to pop up around election time disappearing soon afterwards. They seem to exist solely as part of a strategy to run paid-for stories during the elections.
Often, when politicians make it onto the front page of publications in paid-for coverage, the shot makes it onto light boxes and billboards across the country. “The front page seems to be entirely for sale and is always occupied with the shot of a wannabe politician and some meaningless motto,” Syumar said.
A new trend is to purchase positive coverage on Internet sites rather than on television and print publications. “It is an effective way to target younger and more educated groups who read news online and for conservative dwellers of small towns and villages who rely on their local newspapers.
Paid articles in the press go beyond being unethical. They undermine the credibility of the press and represent a thinly disguised effort to fool the public.
– Michael Willard, Kyiv Post CEO
Since most regional papers do not have enough funds, they take much of their stories from the internet,” said political consultant Vadym Karasyov.
Some websites even have publicly available price lists describing the cost of publishing news. One of them, vlasti.net, drew the attention of the Kyiv Post when on Jan.19 it published a story entitled: “Yatseniuk seeks new media resources.”
In the piece, the publication, without naming its sources, accused the Kyiv Post of planning to broker a partnership with Arseniy Yatseniuk, leader of Front Zmin opposition party.
Citing “reliable sources” vlasti.net claimed that the Kyiv Post plans to establish close relations with Yatseniuk after an in-depth interview with him. The article did not contain any response from the Kyiv Post, its chief editor Brian Bonner or Yatseniuk, nor was any attempt made to contact Bonner or anybody else at the Kyiv Post.
The price list for stories on the vlasti.net site suggests prices for stories are as follows: $100 for a “news piece,” $350 for an “analytical news piece,” $600 for a “top article of the page.”
Posing as an unnamed potential client, the Kyiv Post called the website’s chief editor, Boris Bondar. He confirmed that the site offers a service of posting stories for money without labeling it as PR.
Asked if it is possible to place “a piece, similar to that published about the Kyiv Post,” he answered positively. “We can also keep your story up on the page for more than one day. For example, the Kyiv Post story will on the main page for more than one day because it was part of the deal. We can keep yours up longer as well,” Bondar added.
Later, when the reporter called back and identified herself by name and as representing the Kyiv Post, Bondar claimed to have been misunderstood, but acknowledged that it’s easy to get paid material posted to Ukrainian websites that claim to be news organizations.
He also claimed to have taken the material from URA-Inform at http://ura-inform.com/ru/politics/2012/01/19/iacenuk1. However, the article appeared almost simultaneously on several news sites about 11 am. on Jan. 19, suggesting that someone wanted the material distributed widely.
Kyiv Post CEO Michael Willard said that the English-language newspaper, throughout its nearly 17-year existence, has adhered to a strict policy of not accepting “paid-for” articles or disguising PR and advertising as legitimate news stories.
Like most newspapers, the Kyiv Post relies financially on paid advertising and subscriptions for its revenue and attaches the label “advertisement” if there is any chance that the material could be confused with a news story.
“Paid articles in the press go beyond being unethical. They undermine the credibility of the press and represent a thinly disguised effort to fool the public,” Willard said. “As for the company or person buying the articles, the stories generally are rarely more than slogans and positioning statements. At their worst, they represent an attempt to smear an opponent or another company. Such stories have nothing to do with journalism.”
Kyiv Post staff writer Svitlana Tuchynska can be reached at [email protected].
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