War correspondents demand end to preferential access to red zones on frontlines

March 28 – A group of Ukrainian war correspondents from major national TV channels, radio, and online media said that some journalists are receiving preferential treatment and being given access to be able to report from red zones, the restricted areas near the frontlines. Detector Media published their appeal in full and the journalists posted individual videos on social media. The journalists call for an end to the preferential treatment and ask the government to do away with the recent restrictions, which hinder their ability to provide the public with much-needed information about the war. Marian Kushnir from Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty said that the journalists being given access to work in the red zones all produce content for the United News telethon.

In March the Ukrainian military established three operating zones (green, yellow, and red) for media, each with different regulations including a total media operations ban in the red zone. Numerous journalists and organizations have criticized this approach and called for the situation to be addressed.