On 23 May 2025, Telegram channel channel Trukha began publishing posts which discredited and attacked data journalism project Texty.org.ua, after this outlet published an analysis of Trukha’s activities which supported the claim that the Telegram channel was consciously exploiting regular Russian strikes on Ukraine to increase its audience figures, as well as to direct readers to side projects sponsoring online gambling, among other activities.
In response to the publication, Trukha published three discrediting posts on Telegram. In the first in this series, channel authors said that Texty.org.ua, as well as online publication Detector Media, who reposted Texty’s publication on Trukha, were in fact “grant eaters”. Trukha also accused both publications of receiving grant support instead of donating money to the Ukrainian army, also claiming that the Telegram channel had itself provided 71 million hryvnias in support of the military.
In a later post, Trukha continued its campaign of discrediting Texty.org.ua by recalling a case from 2024 (see separate alert), in which top U.S. officials, including J.D. Vance and Elon Musk, publicly called on the U.S. government to deprive Texty.org.ua of its grant support: this happened after the outlet published an analysis of public speeches by American politicians, identifying those who opposed proving aid to Ukraine. Trukha recalled this incident and claimed that Texty.org.ua had “brought shame on Ukrainian journalism”.
In a third post, Trukha published photos of Texty.org.ua editor-in-chief Roman Kulchynskiy and of his wife Lesya, again recalling the incident in 2024 which involved top American politicians, this time inciting readers to send them direct messages “if they have anything to say”.