How niche media outlets survive in Ukraine

The all-out Russian invasion put the Ukrainian media market at enormous risk. While big publishers managed to scrape through with the help of grants and cost cutting, niche outlets have found themselves on the brink of collapse. Those who used to make money from advertising either shut down, temporarily suspended their operations or started looking for new revenue streams. Those relying on international donors and subscribers have struggled to prove their coverage is essential. 

Funding isn’t the only problem niche outlets have faced in Ukraine against the backdrop of the invasion. Brain drain caused by people fleeing the country, the high inflation rate, and all the hardships the wounded economy entangles played its part. The issue of dissipated audience attention also pops up, among others. In peaceful times, niche media are vital for cultural vibrancy, civic education, and freedom of expression. But who can serenely read about a new musical release during daily shelling? 

Nevertheless, more than one year into the all-out war, life goes on. And many outlets have tested new models or even re-emerged as brand-new projects, trying to keep afloat.

Here’s what we can learn from Ukrainian outlets’ tactics for dealing with the severe crisis, based on the experience of five niche publishers.

In the vanguard of explaining Ukraine 

It was clear from the beginning that Western allies are not just willing to help but are also eager to learn about Ukraine to understand the conflict in-depth. That is why so many explainers touching upon our culture, language, or politics emerged in major publications such as The Guardian or The New York Times during the first months of the full-scale war. Some Ukrainian media reconsidered their priorities and, foreseeing the opportunity of gaining new audiences or raising funds, embarked on the difficult task of explaining Ukraine to others. 

Chytomo, the biggest online literary outlet in Ukraine, had planned to launch an English-language version long before the all-out war. The Russian military aggression gave them an impetus to implement the decision within days. “Before 2022, we got our money from commercial projects with publishing houses and occasionally from grant projects”, says Oksana Hmelyovska, the chief editor. Today the first option isn’t feasible, according to Hmelyovska, since book publishers are in a difficult financial situation themselves. 

The team started producing content in English without any secured funding, relying on a group of volunteers. Only a few months later, they managed to secure a salary for one English-language editor with the support of foreign donors.

Their initial volunteering paid off: Chytomo became one of the prime voices of Ukraine’s literary world for the West, resulting in The Financial Times, Publishers Perspectives, and Publishers Weekly highlighting the team’s activities. They also launched an English-language newsletter targeting a refined audience of book fair directors, PEN International members, and industry experts. Although the outlet’s audience remains primarily Ukrainian, their English-language publications helped attract new Patreon subscribers from abroad and strengthened relationships with some renowned literary networks. “Since February 2022, our readership has grown, shifting from nearly 4,000 readers a day to 8,500 a day on average, which is about 240,000 visitors per month”, says the chief editor.

There are outlets that consider even closer bonds with foreign publishers to sustain themselves. Korydor, a top-notch cultural magazine with more than ten years of history, appeared even more vulnerable due to its dedication to slow content. Its founder Vira Baldyniuk has joined the Polish cultural magazine Dwytygodnik as a section editor, helping the publisher to cull articles in Ukrainian for their special project. Korydor has become Dwytygodnik‘s official partner and the leading content supplier as it possesses expertise in Ukraine’s culture and has forged relationships with the country’s public intellectuals.

Dwytygodnik‘s Ukraine section, Baldyniuk claims, often becomes the most frequently visited among the rest. “Our partnership with Dwytygodnik allows us to make re-publications and share translated articles. Some of the essays appear on both websites. That’s how we deal with extreme lack of resources”, says Baldyniuk. Korydor retains a humble but dedicated circle of approximately 10,000 monthly readers diving into topics as diverse as art implications of women’s genitals or the recent essays by writer Sofia Andrukhovych.

Building a close-knit community

“We now realise the huge value that should be placed on developing a membership model,” says Maksym Serdiuk, a co-owner and chief editor of Slukh. Covering the contemporary music scene in Ukraine, the outlet emerged in 2018 and was mostly funded by Concert.ua, the country’s leading ticket operator. During the pandemic, the operator stopped investing in the outlet, and Slukh embraced a new business model, gaining revenue through native advertising and different types of commercial projects. “Nearly 80% of our budget used to come from ads, and only 20% from grants or donations”, says Serdiuk. Since 2022, the situation has changed dramatically. Seeking lucrative ethical sponsorships became a futile endeavour for Ukrainian niche media. Slukh rejects commercial proposals from betting and tobacco companies, which are considered unethical businesses; substantial grant support is offered primarily for big news organisations. 

However, there is room for growth through community building and offering more than just written content. Offline events became one of the tools. One year before the full-scale war, the team organised its first music festival Spalakh, which attracted nearly 2000 visitors. It prompted a new activity type, beneficial for numerous reasons. First, it boosts the community spirit within the readers, whom Slukh sees as “active participants in the country’s cultural life“ (and ideally their main donors). Second, it’s possible to receive grant support when organising a festival or a community-building event.

A couple of months ago Slukh held a Ukrainian music festival during Eurovision 2023 in Liverpool, receiving support from the city council and the Ukrainian Institute, a government agency that promotes Ukraine’s culture globally. Serdiuk claims that the readership and brand awareness have grown since then, particularly on social media, where the outlet has more than 100,000 followers. Today, Slukh plans to arrange offline lectures, workshops, and small club events in their home country.

Post Impreza, a media in Ivano-Frankivsk that publishes art criticism, has also become keen on event organisation. While other outlets had to reconsider their models working in a war-stricken country, Post Impreza’s team kick-started the project despite the odds. Co-owned by founders of Insha Osvita and Proto produkciia, education and cultural NGOs, it aims to bolster the local art scene in the first place. To achieve its goal and build a more engaged readers’ community, the media has offered offline public talks and writing training, appealing to their 11,000 visitors readership and beyond. Today the outlet is primarily funded by the European Cultural Foundation (ECF), Goethe-Institut Ukraine, and a few more donors. Getting this funding was arduous for a project with such a narrow target audience, says Alona Karavai, the co-owner. That’s why the team sees community building as crucial for more long-term planning. 

Alongside preparing grant applications, they reach out to art institutions abroad, such as galleries and museums that are interested in thriving Ukrainian arts. With the help of partner donations and splitting income between the two founding organisations, the outlet covers cash gaps between different special projects and remains flexible.

Rethinking thematic focus

Some media opted for thematic shifts following their audience’s or potential donors’ needs. LiRoom, a blog on Ukrainian music, has expanded and re-established itself as an online cultural magazine aiming to discover Ukrainian culture as a whole. Alex Bondarenko, the founder and chief editor, estimated that it’s better to go for such change when many pay attention to Ukraine, and it’s definitely easier to ask for support when your outlet serves different milieus. He soon started reaping the benefits of this decision: LiRoom’s readership has tripled since 2022, reaching up to 60,000 unique readers per month. The team also received mentor support from Media Development Foundation experts in marketing and SEO, which helped grow readership.

Despite the success, for Bondarenko, it’s still excruciatingly hard to derive revenue from the enterprise, as it is for other small or middle-sized publishers in Ukraine. “Creative and cultural sectors were never lucrative here, and even before the invasion, we mostly found our commercial partners, such as [ride-hailing service] Uklon, outside these industries,” says Bondarenko. Today the media’s revenue sources consist of grant funding only, which is a temporary lifeline. However, as Bondarenko put it, “Culture cannot simply dry up one day, so we’ll cover what happens and make plans for the future.” LiRoom has also been testing monthly offline events, hosting clip makers and musicians to keep their audience posted and engaged.

Outlook for the future

Most of the media managers interviewed say that they have financial resources secured for roughly three months, which is a daunting prospect even compared to crises-affected national-level publications and local outlets. It makes drafting strategies and setting long-term goals an improbable task. 

However, having been pressured into crisis-management thinking, at least since the pandemic, Ukrainian niche media have acquired incredible resilience. Most managers are well aware that keeping all eggs in one basket is not a viable idea. They keep their eyes peeled for various opportunities and custom solutions, such as switching to event organisation to provide for the team or creatively addressing prospective stakeholders abroad to collect donations.

A real game-changer would be the country’s economic growth and readers’ growing purchasing power. And while these goals are not attainable today for the whole of Ukraine, niche outlets continue to cater to their audience despite the shrinking market. 

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