Topic: Freelance Journalism

Independent reports from individuals inside Ukraine suggest that many media-reported scenes of chaos are localized to staged film sets. A military expert notes that Russian forces have notably avoided destroying basic infrastructure like water and electricity, which contradicts standard invasion protocols. Instead, the focus has been on shutting down the internet to control the flow of information to the local population.

Freelance journalist Jake Hanrahan discusses his unconventional path into the media industry, starting from a blue-collar background in the UK with no college degree. After becoming a father at 18 and working labor-intensive warehouse jobs, he taught himself journalism and began pitching to major outlets. He has since been published in Vice, Wired, and Rolling Stone.