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The TV president who became real

Published 8 February 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Zelensky at the World Economic Forum with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.

In recent years, hardly any other political leader has been highlighted by the media and political establishment and praised so unanimously as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – who in the current narrative has come to characterize the epitome of a modern patriotic folk hero.

Who is he and why is he so immensely popular with the Western power elite?

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, Western establishment media have effectively acted as megaphones for Volodymyr Zelensky’s statements and pronouncements to a global audience.

Among the wave of photographs of Ukraine’s president, images of him in military garb have become among the most iconic – with the narrative that this is a leader who personally stands up for the Ukrainian people against Russia, who cares about his soldiers and who is not afraid to face the enemy.

Born in 1978 to a Jewish family in Kryvoj Rog, Ukraine, the father was a scientist and professor of computer engineering and the mother was an engineer. Volodymyr Zelensky’s grandfather Simon was also an infantryman and later a colonel in the Red Army.

The Ukrainian President himself says that his Jewish family, like most in the Soviet Union, was not particularly religious, but that he got his “moral compass” from the Jewish tradition and that one of the traits he says he has inherited is that he does not tolerate any lies.

Volodymyr Zelensky graduated from the Kiev National Economic University in 2002 with a law degree but has never worked as a lawyer, choosing instead to focus on a career as a comedian and actor, including with the production team Kvartal 95, which has produced and starred in a wide range of TV programs, shows and films since the mid-90s. These have included the group’s homoerotic portrayal of the traditional Cossacks, an East Slavic ethnic group with strong ties to both Ukraine and Russia that have become symbolic in both countries of national history and spirit.

 

 

From TV president to real life

In 2015 – four years before Zelensky became president in real life – he starred for three seasons in the TV series “Servant of the People”, in which he plays a history teacher who, by chance, becomes president of Ukraine with the mission of fighting oligarchs and corruption. During the war in Ukraine, a large number of TV channels around the world – including Sweden’s SVT – bought the series.

In March 2018, members of Zelensky’s production team Kvartal 95 announced the registration of a political party called “Servants of the People” – the same party name under which Zelensky’s character came to power in the TV series. On December 31, Zelenskyj also announced on live television that he is running for president with the hope of defeating incumbent Petro Poroshenko.

At the same time, many have pointed out that it was not Zelensky’s own idea to run for office, but that his political career was driven by the Jewish-Ukrainian multi-billionaire and former governor Ihor Kolomojskyj, who wanted to remove the incumbent president Petro Poroshenko. This was partly because he wanted to nationalize PrivatBank, Ukraine’s largest bank – which is also owned by Kolomojskyj.

According to academic analyst Andrew Joyce, Kolomojskyj used his extensive assets and media companies to create “Servant of the People” with the aim of creating a TV series so close to reality that viewers would associate Zelensky as a person and not just his character as the one to fight the widespread corruption in Ukraine – and thus make him the favorite to win the election.

And so it was, Zelensky won the presidential election after an almost entirely virtual campaign and without a detailed ideological platform. Ihor Kolomoyskyi was also rewarded for his efforts when the newly elected president cancelled the nationalization of the big bank and returned it to the notorious oligarch, who has also been accused of financing the far-right Azov Battalion.

Photo: manhai/CC BY 2.0

 

Criminal oligarchs

Ukrainian media have also reported how Zelensky and his partners may have received up to $40 million from various offshore companies linked to Kolomojskyj.

One consequence of the oligarch’s shady dealings coming to light is that he and his family are no longer allowed to enter the United States, as Kolomojskyj is believed to be involved in widespread fraud and money laundering. However, the links do not appear to have had any major consequences for Zelensky and the president has consistently denied that he is or has been involved in any illegalities, despite repeated accusations.

Viktor Pinchuck, another Jewish oligarch and Ukraine’s second richest man who also aims to liberalize Ukraine and bring the country closer to NATO, the US and the EU, has, according to analysts, put a lot of energy into trying to influence Zelensky and his policies.

Zelensky also has good relations with other oligarchs, such as the Russian-Jewish Roman Abramovich, against whom the West has wanted to impose a series of sanctions because of the war, with Zelensky appealing to US President Joe Biden to stop sanctions against Abramovich.

The fact that Zelensky is praised by US and EU leaders is not difficult to understand in light of the foreign policy he advocates. Among other things, the president wants Ukraine to distance itself from Russia and join the EU and NATO – memberships he says the Ukrainian people have shown they support. An application for EU membership was also submitted in February 2022.

At the same time, the president has shown more totalitarian tendencies – not least in connection with the war in Ukraine, when he suddenly decided to ban large parts of the political opposition in the country, using the country’s martial law.

Earlier in March, 11 Ukrainian political parties were banned on the grounds that they were linked to Russia. These included the Opposition Bloc, the largest opposition party in the Ukrainian parliament and by far the most popular party among the Russian minority in the country. Several Ukrainian media channels with alleged links to Russia were banned at the same time.

Disappointed with Israel

Zelensky’s relationship with Israel appears to be somewhat complex. The president has previously declared that Israel and the Jewish people are “a unique people” and that “the Jews managed to build a country, to elevate it, without anything except people and brains”. He has also praised Israel’s military capabilities and ability to fight its enemies and external threats.

At the same time, he is highly critical of not receiving the support he wants from Israel during the war and is upset that Israel will not share its missile systems with Ukraine.

– Ukraine made the choice to save Jews 80 years ago. Now it’s Israel’s turn to make its choice… Everybody knows that your missile systems are the best… and that you can really help save our people, save the lives of Ukrainians, of Ukrainian Jews.

The Ukrainian president has also expressed anger that Israel has not yet chosen to impose strong enough sanctions on Russia or put pressure on Russian companies, saying that what is happening now in Ukraine is comparable to the Holocaust during the Second World War and that Israel thus has a moral obligation to intervene.

– Our people are now wandering the world, searching for a place, just as you once wandered, he said in his address to the Knesset.

 

 

Zelensky has also attended the infamous globalist think tank World Economic Forum‘s Davos meeting and also the EU Parliament where he has argued that Ukraine should become the obvious “leader” of Eastern and Central Europe. The EU leadership’s support for Zelensky was also evident after his speech to the EU Parliament when he was greeted with a standing ovation.

It is clear that the tributes to Zelensky paradoxically emphasized the national patriotic struggle in a way that is unique in the dominant narrative of the mainstream media over the past 20 years. How the saga of the West’s new folk hero ends remains to be seen.

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Israel’s Eurovision public vote record sparks suspicion of coordinated campaign

Published 20 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Israeli representative Yuval Raphael performing at this year's Eurovision.

Israel’s contribution to the Eurovision Song Contest 2025 has become a hot topic – not only for its performance, but also for the record-high number of votes from the audience. Now, suspicions are growing that organized campaigns may have influenced the result.

According to the Schibsted newspaper SvD, both experts and Eurovision fans have reacted to Israel receiving so many votes from TV viewers. Israel’s representative Yuval Raphael won the public vote by a large margin, but Austria took home the final victory thanks to higher scores from the jury groups.

As in Malmö last year, Israel’s entry was controversial even before the final, mainly because of the ongoing war in Gaza.

It is worth noting that Yuval Raphael survived the Hamas attack at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and she says that the experience has shaped her and her entry, “New Day Will Rise”, which she believes carries a strong message of hope and reconstruction.

EBU will investigate

According to SvD, there are suspicions of coordinated efforts on platforms such as Telegram, Facebook, and X, where users have shared instructions on how to vote from different countries and use VPN services to circumvent geographical restrictions.

Similar patterns have been seen in previous years, but this year’s mobilization is described as unusually extensive. There have also been reports of automated bots and paid advertisements targeting the Eurovision audience.

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which organizes the contest, has confirmed that it is following up on the information and analyzing voting patterns. In a statement, the EBU says it has advanced systems to detect and stop cheating, but that it always reviews its procedures after the contest.

Journalist asked critical questions about Israel – banned from Eurovision

The situation in Gaza

Published 15 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
Journalist Szymon Stellmaszyk, banned from Eurovision 2025.

Polish journalist Szymon Stellmaszyk has been denied accreditation for this year’s Eurovision Song Contest in Basel. He believes this is due to a critical question he asked Israeli artist Eden Golan last year – something the EBU denies.

Szymon Stellmaszyk has covered the Eurovision Song Contest for 20 years and runs both the Facebook page “Let’s talk about ESC” and the industry website “Radio Newsletter”. This year, for the first time, he has been denied accreditation to cover the contest in Basel.

The background, according to Stellmaszyk himself, is a critical question he asked Israel’s contestant, Eden Golan, during Eurovision in Malmö last year. He asked whether Golan, given the political situation and the war in Gaza, thought her presence could pose a security risk to other participants and the audience.

The question attracted attention and was criticized by some, but Stellmaszyk emphasizes that it was not intended to be offensive or “anti-Semitic”. In an email to Stellmaszyk, which the Swedish state broadcaster SVT has seen, the EBU justifies its decision by saying that the platforms Stellmaszyk uses do not have sufficient reach.

“Restriction”

Szymon Stellmaszyk himself is convinced that the EBU is making excuses and that it is in fact about the question he asked last year.

– This is some kind of revenge and, in practice, a restriction of freedom of expression, he says.

It should also be noted that this year’s EBU media handbook contains a new rule stating that published content must be “respectful” towards Eurovision and the EBU. Eurovision boss Martin Green says the wording is unfortunate and promises that it will be reworded for next year.

At the same time, he does not want to comment on individual cases, but points out that there are a limited number of places for journalists.

The Eurovision Song Contest 2025 will be held in Basel, Switzerland.

Bizarre children’s series described as “digital drug”

Cultural revolution in the West

Published 10 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff
The characters of the children's series Cocomelon with its abnormal proportions.

The children’s series Cocomelon attracts young children around the world with its colorful animations and catchy songs. Despite its enormous popularity, criticism of the series is growing, with some warnings that its extreme editing could have a very negative effect on children’s brains.

More and more parents and experts are questioning the extremely fast pace of Cocomelon and whether the mass-produced style is really good for young minds, or whether it risks overstimulating children and making them restless.

One of the major objections to Cocomelon is its rapid editing technique, where camera angles change every two to three seconds. This is a hectic and exaggerated pace that is unfortunately all too common in modern children’s entertainment, but here it is taken to a new level.

According to a study by PubMed Central (PMC), the executive functions of 4-year-olds, such as self-control and working memory, are at risk of being severely impaired after being exposed to fast-paced clips for too long.

Many parents also report that their children become agitated after watching children’s series such as Cocomelon, and there is plenty of criticism on social media platforms such as X.

Mass-produced aesthetics

Other research also indicates that rapid camera and clip changes can negatively affect young children’s concentration. The fast pace is no accident either. Cocomelon is designed to capture children’s attention, but some argue that it now goes too far.

According to Findmykids.org, the constant impressions can trigger dopamine release, causing children to seek the same quick rewards even outside the screen – something that can make it harder for them to focus on calmer activities such as reading or playing.

In addition to the pace, the series’ aesthetics have also been criticized. Like most animated productions today, the characters have disproportionately large heads and overly cheerful expressions, which some find unpleasant.

For many parents and viewers, it feels like the series is made on an assembly line where quantity takes precedence over quality, resulting in an aesthetic that is more frightening than charming.

Opinions are divided

Unlike traditional cartoons such as Scooby-Doo, Cocomelon is animated in a way that prioritizes quantity over quality, which is evident in the disproportionate characters and the assembly line feel.

Opinions about Cocomelon are divided. Some experts, such as Rebecca Cowan at Walden University, argue that there is insufficient evidence to single out Cocomelon as the problem – instead, it is total screen time that may be harmful.

– Without empirical research on the show Cocomelon, there is no data to substantiate claims that this show is overstimulating due to the pace of the scenes, she says.

But others warn that the series’ pace and overstimulating elements can have a very negative impact on children’s development, especially in terms of concentration and calmness.

Cocomelon may seem like an easy solution for entertaining young children, but it is worth considering what the fast pace and mass-produced style do to young viewers.

Trump wants 100% tariff on foreign films

Donald Trump's USA

Published 9 May 2025
– By Editorial Staff

Donald Trump has announced that he has initiated a process to impose a 100% tariff on all films produced outside the US that are then imported into the country. Critics warn of the consequences and argue that tariffs will worsen the situation for the American film industry.

The decision, which was announced on May 4, is intended, according to Trump, to protect the American film industry, which he believes is on the verge of “a very fast death”, reports industry publication Variety.

– This is a concerted effort by other nations and, therefore, a national security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda, Trump wrote on his platform Truth Social.

Trump said he has instructed the Department of Commerce and the US Trade Representative to quickly begin the process of imposing the tariffs.

Exact details on how the tariffs will be implemented, such as whether they will also cover streaming services or how the size of the tariffs will be calculated, have not yet been announced.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has confirmed that the authorities are working on the issue.

“Incredibly stupid”

Many American productions are currently filmed in several countries that offer financial incentives for film production, including Canada, the UK, and Australia, and industry representatives are now concerned about how the tariffs would affect ongoing projects and collaborations.

The chair of the Swedish Film and TV Producers Association, Eva Hamilton, called the proposal “incredibly stupid” and warned that it could isolate the US culturally and economically.

It just sounds incredibly stupid, and I find it hard to see how it could be implemented. He’s right that Hollywood hasn’t kept up, but stopping all foreign expertise sounds like shooting yourself in the foot, Eva Hamilton said in an interview with Schibsted owned TV4.

Trump has previously singled out Hollywood as a “very problematic place” and, in early 2025, appointed actors Jon Voight, Mel Gibson, and Sylvester Stallone as ambassadors to promote American film production.

The American film industry has already been affected by Trump’s trade war, and China, among others, has reduced its quota for American films allowed to be shown in response to the new American tariffs on the country.

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