Tragedy And Madness In Time Of War

Michael Hedges April 29, 2022 - Follow on Twitter

The Russian Federation’s war on Ukraine is bloody and terrifying. People benefitting from free, independent news media are hearing the stories and seeing pictures in realtime. Others are mollified by a different reality.

Killed in her home last night (April 28) was RFE/RL Ukraine service Radio Svoboda (Radio Liberty) reporter/producer Vira Gyrych. She succumbed to injuries during a Russian cruise missile attack that struck her Kyiv apartment building. Her body was discovered in the rubble the following morning, said Radio Svoboda Kyiv bureau chief Inna Kuznetsova to Ukrainian news service IMI (April 29). The Russian missile volley commenced as United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres was meeting Ukrainian and Bulgarian officials nearby. Informed of the missile strike Mr. Guterres expressed “shock,” reported Al Jazeera (April 29). Ms Gyrych had worked for Radio Svoboda since 2018. RFE/RL is funded by the US Congress.

Two weeks earlier reports emerged of two other Ukrainian media workers found dead, noted the committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) (April 13). Dytynets television broadcaster video technician Roman Nezhyborets was sheltering with his family near Yahidne when detained by Russian forces on or about March 5. When discovered, his hands were tied behind his back and his body riddled with bullet wounds. The body of reporter Zoreslav Zamoysky was found in early April on a street in Bucha, site of the mass murder of 400 civilians at the hands of Russian military. His last social media post was filled March 4. The CPJ has enumerated 20 journalists killed in Ukraine since the February 24th Russian invasion.

Meanwhile Russian state media executives and personalities continue howling at the moon at perceived injustices. Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry was deeply offended this week, reported Eurasianet (April 28), by a rant from sometime talkshow host, sometime film director Tigran Keosayan and is weighing barring him from Kazakhstan. Mr. Keosayan complained about the cancelling of May 9 Victory Day celebrations in Kazakhstan, which date from the Soviet Union days. “Look carefully at what is happening in Ukraine,” he ranted. “If you think that you can get away with trying to be so cunning, and imagine that nothing will happen to you, you are mistaken.” The Kazakh Foreign Ministry was not amused.

Mr. Keosayan and Margarita Simonyan are considered the Russian media power couple. She is, of course, in charge of state propaganda outlets RT (Russia Today) and Sputnik. Recently she’s been popping off about World War 3. At a Monday (April 25) press conference the Moscow Prosecutor General announced a “Neo Nazi” assassination team, on orders of the Ukrainian Security Service, had been arrested for plotting the demise of Ms Simonyan, Mr. Keosayan and other prominent Russian propaganda ranters including Vladimir Solovyov. Of course, there was video of a raid. Evidence laid out on a table included “orders” that had been signed by “signature unclear” and copies of the SIMS video game, perhaps confused by the raiding agents for mobile phone SIM cards. By the end of the week, the hoax bust was dropped from Russian state TV.

Then there was the “mysterious” destruction of a broadcast transmission facility Tuesday morning (April 26) in Transnistria, the pro-Russian unrecognized breakaway region of Moldova. Two towers were destroyed and the transmitter facility damaged. No staff or civilians were onsite at the time. The powerful AM/MW radio broadcast facility had been operated by religious broadcaster Trans World Radio for decades. Recently the facility was “appropriated” to broadcast Russian propaganda into Ukraine. Noting these circumstances, Bellingcat’s Christo Grozev suggested the possibility of “Devine intervention.”

See also...

• Hot Topics - Media in Ukraine

• Hot Topics - Conflict Zones

• Hot Topics - Media in the Russian Federation

• Hot Topics - Propaganda