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Projects of Ukrainian international broadcasting adapted into Italian can now be viewed on the author’s YouTube channel of FREEДОМ TV host Kateryna Nesterenko.
Interviews with Ukrainian and European opinion leaders on the continuation of Russian aggression, the real situation on the front line, materials about Russia’s economic problems, and the true life of Russians in the provinces are the topics that most interest viewers of Kateryna Nesterenko’s YouTube channel, which she runs in Italian.
“The channel was born at the beginning of the full-scale invasion, when it became important to tell the world the truth about Russia’s crimes and Ukrainian resilience,” says Kateryna Nesterenko.
During her school years, Kateryna studied in Italy for one year and later worked in the country for seven years as a correspondent for one of Ukraine’s leading television channels. Therefore, she chose Italian as the language to communicate with her audience.
Initially, the channel featured videos reviewing current events, materials dedicated to the history of Ukraine, and explanations of why Ukraine is not Russia.
“Italy and the Soviet Union once had very close ties through the cooperation of communist parties, and many people there still sympathize with dictatorship and admire what they perceive as the exotic aesthetics of Russia. Moreover, Russian propaganda operates very actively in Italy,” the host explains.
Therefore, when selecting topics for reviews and interviews, the journalist focuses primarily on an audience aged 45–60, as younger people, according to her, have more opportunities for communication and are less susceptible to Russian influence.
Recently, Kateryna Nesterenko joined the team of presenters at the FREEДОМ TV channel. She has also begun adapting FREEДОМ content into Italian for her author’s YouTube channel.
One of the most popular videos on the channel is a conversation with Russian economist Igor Lipsits about how aggression against Ukraine has led to catastrophic consequences for Russia’s economy. Up to 90% of the video’s audience is from Italy.
“The audience is most interested in materials about events on the front line, Russia’s economic difficulties, the contrast between the lives of Russian oligarchs and ordinary Russians in the provinces, and how Russian propaganda operates,” Kateryna notes.
According to the journalist, visual content also helps promote Ukrainian narratives—for example, maps and footage from the frontline or interviews filmed against the backdrop of destroyed Russian military equipment in central Kyiv. This approach helps clearly convey Ukrainian messages to the target audience. Currently, 99.3% of the channel’s views come from an international audience, with 85% from Italy. Among the cities with the highest viewership are Milan, Rome, Bologna, Turin, and Naples.
“It is very important for us that Italians and other Italian-speaking audiences now have greater access to the truth about Ukraine,” said Vadym Lubchak, Head of Digital at the State Enterprise “IBMPU”. “This is not only a challenge but also a strategic goal. Ukrainian international broadcasting is constantly expanding its digital platform ecosystem, while also increasing the number of partners working in different languages who can distribute content we have already produced and published. This approach allows us to reach a wider audience. Increasingly, major channels in English, Spanish, Arabic, and other languages are approaching IBMPU to quote our content and distribute it on their platforms. We analyze these channels and their audiences, and if they meet our criteria, we begin cooperation. Our goal is to ensure that Ukraine’s voice is fully represented worldwide across all possible platforms and formats.”
Italian has become the tenth language through which Ukrainian international broadcasting communicates with foreign audiences. Today, content produced by the State Enterprise “IBMPU” is available in Ukrainian, Russian, English, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Turkish, Arabic, and Polish. The international broadcasting team is also working to expand its language lineup.
FREEДОМ content in Italian is available via the provided link.
FREEДОМ is Ukraine’s state international broadcasting channel focused on Russian-speaking audiences outside Ukraine. The TV channel is broadcast via satellite, cable, DTH, IPTV networks of national operators, and OTT platforms. Digitally, it is представлен on 14 online platforms, including YouTube, Facebook, TikTok, Telegram, X, and WhatsApp. FREEДОМ is part of the State Enterprise “The International Broadcasting Multimedia Platform of Ukraine” (IBMPU).
IBMPU is a resilient, multi-level institution within the state’s information security system, comprising ten media brands—FREEДОМ, Dim, UATV.English, UATV.Arabic, UATV.Español, The Gaze, UATV.Português, UATV.Deutsch, UATV.Türkçe, UATV po polsku —which produce and broadcast content in nine languages: English, Arabic, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, German, Russian, Turkish, and Ukrainian.
