Ukraine's TV restructured; critics cry foul (01/12/97)

Ukraine's TV restructured; critics cry foul

by Roman Woronowycz
Kyiv Press Bureau

KYIV - In a restructuring of its broadcasting, Ukraine's two government-run television channels have opted to no longer carry private broadcasting except for the German-based "Studio 1+1." The move sounds the death knell for one of Ukraine's more popular news programs, "Vikna."

On December 31, 1996, the National Television and Radio Broadcasting Commission announced that because of its heavy broadcasting schedule, it will no longer carry independent news programs.

The two stations, UT-1 and UT-2, have long been accused of simply being propaganda arms of the government. According to the Kiev Post, even producers and reporters at the networks admit that their reports are regularly censored and that most news reflects the official position of the government.

Viktor Petrenko, chairman of the National TV and Radio Broadcasting Commission, had said on December 17, that many private companies would be cut out in the restructuring of national TV. He said companies propogating pornography and violence "would be punished." He also said the commission "would insist on broader introduction of the Ukrainian language in broadcasting."

"Vikna," a news program that broadcasts in Ukrainian, did not seem like a show that was ready for the chopping block. However, it may be a matter of censorship due to content. Yurii Aivazian, a director of the International Media Center (IMC), which finances "Vikna," said the networks had censored the news program in the past. "The day Parliament Chairman Oleksander Moroz condemned the beginning of the re-election campaign, we put his quote in the news, and the National Commission removed the program from the evening line-up and broadcast Strauss music instead," he said.

IMC President Mykola Kniazhytskyi said this was not the first instance of government disapproval of a piece that "Vikna" had run, according to Agence France Press. He recalled that in July the government had expressed its irritation with a story on the strike by the independent miners' union and its leader who was in prison awaiting trial.

He called the government's latest move "indirect censorship."

Meanwhile "Studio 1+1," which will be granted nine hours of broadcast time daily, said it was awarded the contract because it is the only broadcasting firm able to afford the licensing fee.

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