Background
The Commission on Journalistic Ethics received a complaint from Oleksii Yaroslavtsev regarding the publication “One Law for Everyone: Case Launched re: Arestovych’s Sexist Statements about Women” (TabloID website, October 13, 2023, author Tamara Kudriavchenko).
The complainant notes that “the very first sentence of the lead contains an evaluative judgment about the author’s attitude towards the person covered in the article. The title and the article promote prosecuting political scientist O. Arestovych for statements during a closed webinar, though the letter by the police itself indicates that the proceeding was opened on the application by an MP. “The letter does not contain data establishing anyone’s guilt, cover the investigative actions conducted etc.”
The complainant considers the publication manipulative and believes it to violate journalistic standards.
The Commission on Journalistic Ethics approached the editorial office of Ukrainska Pravda requesting comments on the publication. No response was provided.
Relevant ethical standards and compliance
The contested news is posted under the heading “Scandal” on the TabloID website, which is one of the projects of Ukrainska Pravda. The news was published due to the post made by MP Inna Sovsun, who filed a statement to the National Police following the publication of videos online with sexist statements by Oleksii Arestovych, former advisor to the Office of the President. The police registered her statement and included this information in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations.
The statements of Mr. Arestovych, which he made at his invite-only webinars, caused a public outcry and were actively discussed in the media and social networks. In particular, the former advisor of the Office of the President called for violence against women (“choke without letting go”), referred to women as “creatures” etc. Information about the legal evaluation of Arestovych’s statements was important for society and necessary for comprehensive coverage of the topic. This information emphasized the inadmissibility of discriminatory statements and the possible path to prosecution for such statements.
The publication is posted on a website that works in tabloid format — the genre that involves the use of various stylistic techniques, such as exaggeration, focus on sensational aspects of the story or features of the person featured in the material. And although tabloid journalism can be significantly different from the style of traditional media, the choice of specific approaches is the decision of the author or editor unless it misleads readers or distorts facts.
The Commission accepts the complaint for consideration, taking into account the public importance of the topic of discriminatory statements of Mr. Arestovych. In addition, the Commission takes into consideration the fact that Ukrainska Pravda posted the contested publication on its website in the main newsfeed on October 13, 2023, under the heading “Case Opened against Arestovych for Sexist Statements about Women.”
Clause 6 of the Ethics Code of the Ukrainian Journalist: “Respecting the right of the public to full and objective information about facts and events is the primary duty of a journalist. Journalists and editors must take steps to verify the authenticity of all messages, video and audio materials received from members of the public, freelancers, press services and other sources.”
The story is based on an MP’s Telegram post, where she reported the response of the National Police regarding the registration of her statement and the launch of a pre-trial investigation.
As confirmation of this fact, the journalist posted a screenshot of Inna Sovsun’s post and a photo of the response from the police. In the document, the police informs that they have registered the statement of the MP and entered the information indicated in the statement into the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations based on a potential criminal violation under Art. 300 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
The Commission considers the answer of the National Police to be sufficient confirmation of the information provided by the MP, and the journalists had the right to use this answer in the material.
The text of the article reports that “criminal proceedings have been opened based on Arestovych’s statements.” Indeed, the registration of a statement suggesting the commission of a criminal offense in the Unified Register of Pre-Trial Investigations and the beginning of a pre-trial investigation is the first stage of criminal proceedings. Although the police do not state directly that “criminal proceedings have been launched” or “a case has been launched” in their response, the media outlet uses the language that is often used by the media in connection with pre-trial investigations.
At the same time, the Commission notes that the police response indicates that the investigation was initiated based on the statement by the MP rather than Arestovych’s statements. According to the law, the police are obliged to register all reports of criminal offenses, and only then to check the information and investigate the circumstances. At the time of publication, the investigation had not yet reached any conclusions or brought charges.
On this basis, the Commission on Journalistic Ethics believes the material to be in violation of cl. 6 of the Code.
Journalists should be careful with wording that may give the impression of already proven guilt of those involved in criminal proceedings, rather than allegations.
Regarding the publication of the story in the main newsfeed of Ukrainska Pravda. The material is placed in the Latest News category, which gives the readers an impression that this is an information article created under the standards of Ukrainska Pravda itself.
In this case, the information contained a factual error (the investigation was initiated based on the statement by the MP rather than Arestovych’s statements). The heading used in the article does not correspond to the main text of the material and also contains a mistake.
At the same time, the original title on the TabloID website is not in violation of any rules.
The Commission believes that by placing the news in the main newsfeed and with another headline that contains an error, Ukrainska Pravda committed violations of the Ethics Code.
Clause 9 of the Ethics Code of the Ukrainian Journalist: “Facts, judgments and assumptions must be clearly separated from one another. The dissemination of information containing bias or unfounded accusations is unacceptable.”
The author of the complaint draws attention to the first paragraph, which, in his opinion, contains an evaluative judgment.
As established by the Commission on Journalistic Ethics, on October 13, 2023, the day the story was posted, the first sentence looked like this:
“It seems that this time, the former independent advisor of the Office of the President Oleksii Arestovych will have to account for his sexist statements about women before the law.”
https://web.archive.org/web/20231014052933/https://tabloid.pravda.com.ua/scandal/proti-arestovicha-vidkrili-spravu-2000485/
By the time the material was considered by the Commission, the editors made changes to the text, and the first sentence was edited as follows:
“It seems that the former independent advisor of the Office of the President Oleksii Arestovych may have to account for his sexist statements about women before the law.”
It should be taken into account that the disputed material on the TabloID website is placed in the “Scandal” section, not “News,” so the emotional style is justified by the genre of tabloid journalism. In this case, the Commission does not consider it to be a violation of clause 9 of the Code.
Findings and recommendations
The position of the Ukrainian media, which almost unanimously condemned O. Arestovych for his sexist statements, shows that the majority of journalists consider discrimination against women unacceptable, regardless of what form it takes. Open discussion of this topic in the media is a positive signal.
The Commission welcomes the fact that tabloid journalism draws attention to such socially important topics as discrimination, gender equality, etc., and emphasizes the fact that each media has the right to its own approaches to covering topics, according to the chosen format.
At the same time, it should be noted that materials covering criminal investigations or judicial proceedings should be treated with utmost care and accuracy, maintaining the presumption of innocence, even if the individuals featured in the story are not to the journalists’ personal liking. On the other hand, the newsroom may use this news hook to create other materials which clearly indicate the position of the author or the media outlet.
Having considered the material “One Law for Everyone: Case Launched re: Arestovych’s Sexist Statements about Women” and its version in the news feed of Ukrainska Pravda under the title “Case Opened against Arestovych for Sexist Statements about Women,” the Commission on Journalistic Ethics has established a violation of the Ethics Code of the Ukrainian Journalist, cl. 6, and issues a warning to TabloID and Ukrainska Pravda.
The Commission on Journalistic Ethics emphasizes that while preparing materials connected with investigations and judicial proceedings, it is particularly important to adhere to the Code, regardless of the genre of the publication, and this applies to tabloid journalism.
The Commission considers it necessary to separately develop recommendations on compliance with ethical approaches in tabloid journalism.