To understand the implications of the war in Ukraine, find an independent news source
I’ve been watching the Russian invasion of Ukraine unfold on social media with horror over the past 24 hours.
Social media has provided us an incredible, near-live look at the toll of human suffering being experienced by millions of Ukrainians. But when I want to look beyond the videos, tweets and live updates, I turn to the independent, nonprofit newsrooms that are part of the INN network. These newsrooms are telling the stories of both regular people and power players — helping us understand this situation better.
PassBlue, an INN member devoted to covering the United Nations, detailed the moment when ambassadors calling for a de-escalation of tensions at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council were interrupted by the announcement of President Putin’s “special military operation” in Ukraine.
When Russia captured the Chernobyl nuclear power plant on Thursday, Mother Jones quickly explained what possession of the old reactor and nuclear waste storage site means for all of us. PRX’s radio program The World looked at how Russian diplomats are trying to rally support for Russia in Latin America. While CodaStory helped me understand how COVID-19 played a not insignificant part in bringing us to this moment, JTA explained how Ukraine’s Jewish community is confronting emotions from the legacy of the Holocaust, during which more than 1 million Jews were killed in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Ukrainians in the US are dealing with the fear that loved ones still in Ukraine may be hurt or killed in the fighting, and they’re demanding the US do more to stand up to Russia, as reported by WLVR in Eastern Pennsylvania and Block Club Chicago. Denverite gave us the story of a Ukrainian who fled his country as a boy during the Soviet period and has been glued to recent events, while Fort Worth Report chronicled the a group of Ukranians attending a leadership conference in Texas hoping to return home with lessons to fight corruption — if Ukraine is still theirs to improve.
No matter how this invasion is ultimately resolved, the natural landscape will no doubt bear a heavy price. National Parks Traveler detailed how managers at Ukraine’s national parks prepared in the run-up to the conflict.
In the days and weeks ahead, it will be helpful to tune out partisan voices and search for independent sources of news about the invasion of Ukraine. To find nonprofit newsrooms in your area or that cover the angles that matter to you, visit FindYourNews.org.
