When Russia launched its full‑scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the world scrambled for reliable information. Governments, journalists, and ordinary readers were suddenly hungry for clear, on‑the‑ground reporting that cut through propaganda and rumor. By a twist of timing that was both tragic and fortuitous, one of the most authoritative English‑language newsrooms in Ukraine had launched just months earlier.
The Kyiv Independent was founded in November 2021, after the owner of the Kyiv Post fired its entire newsroom in a dispute over editorial independence. Rather than disperse, the journalists regrouped. With support from media consultants and a shared sense of urgency, they created a new publication with a simple mission: preserve an independent English‑language voice reporting from Ukraine to the world.
A few months later, the invasion began. “It was a very stupid time to lose an English‑language voice out of Ukraine,” recalled Zakhar Protsiuk, the Kyiv Independent’s chief operating officer. “The rumors that Russia might invade were already very much in the air.”
What followed was explosive growth. The Kyiv Independent’s Twitter following jumped from tens of thousands to millions in weeks. Its editor‑in‑chief appeared on the cover of Time. International media outlets began citing the publication daily. But attention alone does not build a sustainable institution. Turning a moment of global focus into a durable media organization required deliberate strategy, discipline, and a willingness to rethink familiar newsroom business models.
A Media Operator, Not Just a Journalist
Protsiuk’s path to the Kyiv Independent helps explain the organization’s unusually sophisticated approach to sustainability. Although he began his career as a journalist, he quickly gravitated toward media management. “I really like the industry. I really like the impact,” he said. “But I felt like I could bring more when I work on strategy.”
Before joining the Kyiv Independent full‑time, Protsiuk worked at a consulting firm called Jnomics, helping media organizations across Central and Eastern Europe build sustainable business models under difficult political and economic conditions. He also co‑founded The Fix, an English‑language publication covering media innovation across Europe—a kind of Nieman Lab for markets outside the US and UK.
That background proved crucial. When the Kyiv Independent launched, it was driven primarily by mission and urgency. Business infrastructure lagged behind demand. Protsiuk formally joined in spring 2022 with a clear mandate: scale the organization so it could survive beyond the initial surge of wartime attention.
“At that moment, the demand for our journalism was so much higher than the resources we had in place,” he said. “The question was: how do we build the Kyiv Independent into an institution that will be here for a long time?”
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