Nastia Stanko - attack 17.07.2026

On 17 July 2026, Nastia Stanko, Editor-in-Chief of the investigative outlet Slidstvo.Info, published three posts on her X account concerning the investigation into alleged violations of the rights of service members in the Skelia Regiment and the potential dismissal of the then Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Syrskyi.

The comments under these posts contain signs of hate speech, gendered disinformation, online defamation, sexism, and misogyny, employing similar rhetoric throughout. For example, Nastia Stanko is repeatedly referred to as a “whore,” “madam,” “that stupid thing,” and “the c**t who tolerated the dictatorship.”

Commenters also deliberately distort her surname into the derogatory form “Stsianko” and threaten to “report her to the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) for separatism.”

This case demonstrates clear signs of technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV), including misogynistic hate speech, sexist abuse, online defamation, gendered disinformation, and intimidation. Rather than addressing the substance of Nastia Stanko’s reporting or her journalistic arguments, many comments seek to discredit her as a woman journalist. This is done through gendered insults, degrading language, the deliberate distortion of her surname, and baseless accusations of supporting a “dictatorship” or “separatism.”

Such rhetoric constitutes a form of online defamation and gendered disinformation aimed at undermining the journalist’s professional credibility. Some comments also contain elements of intimidation, particularly threats to “report her to the SBU for separatism,” which may create an atmosphere of fear and psychological pressure.

Taken together, the misogynistic abuse, reputational attacks, disinformation, and threats contribute to a hostile online environment that may damage the journalist’s professional reputation and produce a chilling effect on her future reporting, particularly when covering politically sensitive and high-profile issues.