Ukrainian Journalists Meet at Soyuzivka

Volodymyr Kish

The weekend of May 15 – 17 saw journalists and members of the Ukrainian media meet at the Ukrainian Media Congress held at the Ukrainian National Association (UNA) Resort “Soyuzivka” in the Catskill Mountains of New York State. The participants, members of the Association of Ukrainian Journalists of Canada and the USA, engaged in wide-ranging discussions during sessions that encompassed such topics as Media for the 4^th Wave, Journalistic Ethics, Role of Ukrainian Media in the Community, and Modern Electronic Media. The conference was made possible by the generous support of the Ukrainian airline Aerosvit, the Self-Reliance Federal Credit Unions of New York and Chicago, as well as the “Soyuzivka” resort (Ukrainian National Association).

Canadian representation included delegates from the papers The New Pathway - Noviy Shliakh, (Volodymyr and Daria Kish), and Meest (Inna Kruchek), the journal Nasha Doroha (Oksana Bashuk-Hepburn), the television programs Kontakt (Jurij Klufas & Oleh Vodoviz) and Svitohliad (Stefan Genyk-Berezowsky), the Ukrainian radio programs Prometheus (Olha Vovnysh) and Radio Canada International (Oleksandr Kharchenko).

The U.S. was well represented with delegates from the papers The Ukrainian Weekly - Svoboda (Roma Hadzewycz & Myron Kuropas), Natsionalna Trybuna (Halyna Rudenko), The Sower (Myroslava Rozdolska), Nashe Zhytya (Lydia Slyzh), the radio program Ukrayinska Khvylia – Chicago (Maria Klymchak) the Internet journal Maidan.org (Josyp Sirka), and freelance journalists Nadezhda Banchik, Volodymyr Bodnar and Bozhena Olshanivska. Also participating was UWC Past President Askold Lozynskyj. Special guests and keynote speakers were Vasyl Ilashchuk, President, and Andrij Cherniuk, VP of the National Television Company of Ukraine.

The conference proved particularly successful in reviving interest and participation in the  association, which during the weekend reconstituted itself as the Ukrainian Journalists of North America (UJNA). At a special organizational session a new board was elected with Jurij Klufas as President, Canadian directors Volodymyr Kish, Oksana Bashuk-Hepburn and Olha Vovnysh, and American directors Myroslava Rozdolska, Roma Hadzewycz and Maria Klymchak. Priorities for the coming year were set in the areas of journalism and the law, the implications of internet and electronic media, and developing connections with Ukrainian journalists and media in Ukraine and throughout the world.