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Week of April 1, 2019

Creative TV polishes election, Instagram helps
"Life consists of small accidents"

TV actor/comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy passed through the first round of Ukraine’s presidential elections last weekend with flying colors. In many respects it was the quintessential post-modern media campaign; media savvy political novice uses TV and Instagram. He is now front-runner for the April 21st run-off facing President Petro Poroshenko.

Aside from playing the role of an accidental president in the TV series Servant of the People, not much was known outside Ukraine about Mr. Zelenskiy until recently. He co-founder and creative director of prolific TV production house Studio Kvartal 95. Yes, he is also a touring stand-up comic.

“As creative people we decided to show how a simple person can become president (then) how everything in the country becomes honest,” said the show’s co-creator Sergei Shefir, quoted by news portal Medusa (April 3). “Nobody thought we would go into politics. Life consists of small accidents.” Servant of the People is in its third season and, yes, it is available on Netflix (English subtitles). Mr. Shefir is now a member of Mr. Zelenskiy’s political team. (See more about elections and media here)

Half of Studio Kvartal 95 revenues, said Mr. Shefir, come from 1+1 Media Group, principally owned by Ukrainian billionaire Ihor Kolomoisky. When he acquired the 1+1 TV channel in 2009, all significant privately-owned TV broadcasters were and still are owned by other well-known Ukrainian billionaires - Rinat Akhmetov (Ukrainia), Dmitry Firtash (Inter), Viktor Pinchuk (ICTV, STB). Mr. Kolomoisky, then owner of TV channel TET TV, became an investor and board member of Central European Media Enterprises (CME), then owner of Studio 1+1, in 2007. Later he merged TET TV with Studio 1+1 as CME exited Ukraine. (See more about media in Ukraine here)

Mr. Kolomoisky had a serious falling out last year with President Poroshenko. The government nationalized his huge banking business PrivatBank with accusations of fraudulent actions. “Mr. Kolomoisky believes the only purpose of this whole story with the nationalization of the bank was the TV channel 1+1,” wrote Medusa.

Anecdotal evidence suggests decisions have been made at 1+1, at the very least, to position Mr. Zelenskiy favorably. A documentary about actor-turned US president Ronald Reagan, voiced by Mr. Zelenskiy, was broadcast December 31st, competing in time period with President Poroshenko’s annual new year’s address. At the close of the show, then in the new year, Mr. Zelenskiy announced his candidacy. On the Saturday before the first-round voting (March 30), 1+1 broadcast a marathon of Servant of the People episodes. “No hard evidence has been presented by any of Zelenskiy’s opponents that Kolomoisky is indeed pulling the strings behind the campaign,” observed Reuters (April 1).

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