ODESA, Ukraine — It’s hard to exaggerate the angst among Kyiv Post staff and supporters at news of the lightning-quick sale of the newspaper on March 21 by Mohammad Zahoor, its owner since 2009, to Adnan Kivan, a Syrian construction magnate based in Odesa.
But, after spending several hours talking with Kivan during our first meeting in his Kadorr Group offices overlooking a cold and blustery Black Sea on March 26, I am here to tell you everything’s going to be alright. We were joined by his wife, Olga, and his son, Ruslan, not just family members but business partners in his mammoth enterprises with 12,500 employees. (The Kyiv Post has just 40 people.) We’ll now be run by Businessgroup LLC.
If not entering another golden age, the Kyiv Post remains in good hands. We’ll still have to execute a solid business plan and make most of our money ourselves — through advertising, subscriptions and events. But the new owner is eager to help his latest acquisition remain a first-rate source of English-language news about Ukraine.
It’s a relief.
I’ve now worked for all three owners of the Kyiv Post.
American Jed Sunden, who started it in 1995 and sold it to Zahoor in 2009, created the space in the advertising market for this wonderful publication and set in stone the guiding principle of editorial independence.
Zahoor saved a dying newspaper and made it vibrant again amid a tough trifecta of recession (two actually – 2008-2009 and 2013-2014), revolution and war.
We didn’t think it could get better, and feared the worst, when an unknown (to us) Kivan bought the paper.
And now it appears we were worried for no reason. He may even be the owner the Kyiv Post needs at this time, as Zahoor decided he had done enough community service after nearly nine years of stewardship.
So we’ll turn off the alarms and apologize for any harm we’ve caused him by printing rumors that turned out to be false.
It is a case of don’t believe everything you read in the newspapers or on TV, the radio or the internet about Kivan.
Question: Depending on who is doing the talking, Kivan is a supporter of:
A) Syrian President Bashar al-Assad;
B) ISIS; or
C) The Free Syrian Army.
Answer: Since it’s impossible to support all three warring factions in Syria’s vicious seven-year civil war, two of them are false — A and B. He’s for democratic rebel forces in Syria.
Question: On another topic, I’ve heard that Kivan is a frontman in the purchase of the Kyiv Post for:
A) President Petro Poroshenko
B) Interior Minister Arsen Avakov;
C) Ex-Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko;
D) None of the above and no other politician either.
Answer: D. At least I don’t believe he is a front man for anyone, after hearing his analysis of the political and economic situation. He’s not happy with the state of Ukraine’s democracy, rule of law, fight against corruption or investment climate. But he wants to stay and fight for improvement.
He does want more coverage of the Syrian civil war, which has killed hundreds of thousands of people and driven millions from his country to flee abroad. We’re happy to do so, and he’s willing to supply additional resources for the job.
Russia’s inhumane aggression against Syria (through propping up Assad) and Ukraine (through dismembering the nation and backing the war in the eastern Donbas) unites both nations.
Kivan’s antipathy to Russia’s policies gives lie to another accusation against him that appears to be part of a feud with local politicians. Last November, Security Service of Ukraine agents raided his businesses to investigate suspicions that he was financing Russian-backed separatists in the eastern Donbas. “Nonsense,” he said at the time.
It would stretch the imagination and defy logic to think that he’s anti-Kremlin and pro-Kremlin at the same time. And, like many politically motivated investigations in Ukraine, nothing has come from the case.
And then there are the rumors that Kivan will end the Kyiv Post’s 23-year history of editorial independence and fire the entire staff, starting with yours truly, the chief editor since 2008.
Question: So finally, which is true?
A) He’s interviewed candidates already for the chief editor’s job because he wants to replace me.
B) He plans to vet all 40 employees before deciding whether they will stay or be let go.
C) He will keep the chief editor in place for the foreseeable future, admires the staff’s work and is willing to make additional investments to improve the financial health and news coverage of the Kyiv Post.
Answer: C, I am happy to say.
