Investigative journalist at Bihus.Info, Oleksandra Fedorko, has been targeted with online attacks because of her professional work. The attackers focus on the journalist’s appearance, publish details of her personal life, and leave hostile comments containing hate speech and threats.
A year ago, in August 2024, Oleksandra Fedorko — then editor-in-chief of Mezha — reported the beginning of a smear campaign against her. After publishing an investigation about the head of the Central Interregional Department of the State Migration Service in Kyiv and Kyiv region, Viacheslav Huz, doctored images of Fedorko — where she was deliberately depicted naked — appeared online. These images were uploaded to an adult website along with her phone number.
This case illustrates such types of online attacks as image manipulation (using someone’s photos out of context, often with sexual overtones) and doxxing — publishing personal information such as a home address or phone number.
“I will not name any names, because I don’t know who did this. Maybe it wasn’t even those people, but it strangely happened right after those materials came out,” the journalist told Women in Media. At that time, she contacted the cyber police and filed a report. However, the case did not progress, and she received no updates from the police.
Later, after Fedorko joined Bihus.Info, she repeatedly became a target of blogger Myroslav Oleshko. Following the full-scale invasion, Oleshko illegally crossed the Ukrainian border using forged documents, evading mobilization — for which the Security Service of Ukraine charged him with suspicion.
In June 2025, Oleshko posted on X, Telegram, and Facebook alleging that Fedorko’s boyfriend was a draft dodger. He illustrated the post with photos, including some taken from the journalist’s social media. In a comment to Women in Media, Fedorko explained that while she had previously been in a relationship with this man, they had long since broken up, so the information was false.
Just days before, Fedorko had published a Bihus.Info YouTube story about draft dodging, where she referred to Oleshko as the “leader of the dodgers’ party.” In the video’s comments, users accused Bihus.Info of “serving the President’s Office,” called the team “so-called journalists,” and more.
In another post about Fedorko, Oleshko called her an “escort girl” and commented on her tanned appearance. In a different one, he insulted her as a “slut” and “whore,” claiming she had traveled to Israel “with a girlfriend and some boys.” The comments contained hate speech and signs of sexualized harassment, such as spreading rumors about alleged sexual behavior, posting sexualized comments under photos, impersonating her, sharing sexual content, or harassing others. The aim of such attacks is to damage the victim’s reputation.
“In the video, I emphasized that Oleshko fled abroad, and that he is a propagandist who undermines Ukraine’s national security. We are at war, and he sits abroad telling people we shouldn’t fight. Okay, then tomorrow the Russian army will be here, and there will be no Ukraine left,” Fedorko said.
In August 2025, another online attack came from Ukrainian MP Oleksii Honcharenko. On his social media accounts, he posted a photo of Fedorko, suggesting that her T-shirt “costs around 10,000 UAH.” The screenshot was taken from a Bihus.Info interview conducted by Fedorko with Belarusian volunteer fighter Ihor Yankov, serving in Ukraine’s Defense Intelligence.
In a comment to Women in Media, Fedorko explained that Honcharenko’s post was untrue, noting that the T-shirt’s actual price is listed on an online store at 210 Polish zlotys — about 2,392 UAH.
Comments under the interview video also contained sexist remarks such as: “This girl should be hosting Top-20 Ukrainian hits on TV,” “The host lost it emotionally,” “Looks like the host wanted Yanki to ask her on a date,” “The girl is very weak, they should have picked someone more experienced.” Once again, users mentioned her “boyfriend who doesn’t fight.” Such comments imply that Fedorko is unfit to conduct professional interviews.
She chose not to respond to these comments or posts.
“The first case was psychologically very difficult for me. Later I developed a kind of tolerance to it. Of course, everyone experiences such things differently, and the scale matters. For me, I realized the best thing is probably to ignore these people,” Fedorko explained.
It is important to note that women journalists often face gender-based online violence — attacks targeting their appearance, emotions, sexuality, or credibility as professionals. Such attacks can severely harm a journalist’s mental health, physical safety, professional reputation, and willingness to continue working. The newsroom’s response within the first 24 hours is critical to stabilize the situation, prevent escalation, and restore trust.
That is why the NGO Women in Media developed a guide: “Steps for Newsroom to Take in the First 24 Hours Following an Online Attack against a Woman Journalist” The guide is based on the practices of the following organizations: UNESCO (The Chilling), Coalition Against Online Violence, PEN America, Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma, IWMF.
The document outlines types of threats, manipulation, and disinformation; it also includes contact information for support services and action algorithms. An attack on a journalist is an attack on the entire newsroom, so the main task of the media is to support and protect their colleague.
This material is prepared under the initiative supported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands as part of the project “Strengthening the Resilience of Women Journalists in Ukraine: Combating Online Violence and Gendered Disinformation,” implemented by the Women in Media NGO.