What needs to be discussed?

What topics/projects of The Day newspaper were the most interesting for our readers last year? Which of them should be continued? What new ones should be initiated? The Day spoke about this with a writer and an old friend of the newspaper Mykhailo SLABOSHPYTSKY.

“I’ve had an interest in the newspaper for seventeen years already. During this time it has become my guide and an interesting partner in conversation, if I may say so. It is a real pleasure to have a nice talk (sometimes in the morning and sometimes in the evening) with a good conversation partner.

“However, over the years I’ve started reading more the humanitarian part of the newspaper, which has been very comprehensive right from the start. Although, I must say, The Day’s political unit is also very professional, and I would rather say diagnostically accurate. By the way, when I miss an article by Oxana Pachlovska, Ihor Losiev, Serhii Hrabovsky, or Yurii Shcherbak it seems like I’ve lost something. This happened with the articles about the blessed memory of Klara Gudzyk and James Mace. The Day can be compared to a magnet that attracts original deep authors, as well as readers. It as if, so to speak, creates an alternative environment to the general informational space in Ukraine. It shows what Ukraine could have been and what it still may be.

“Personally I like the fact that The Day keeps on top of literary process. Few of the local media show to the society that Ukraine has interesting and modern literature. If we had politicians that would be like our writers, we would be setting some trends in Europe. Therefore, out of all social and political printed media The Day most clearly presents literary process. We could, perhaps, discuss the fact that some of the authors are more favored than others, but the work is being done. I’ve been engaged in the literary process for forty years already and it seems to me that there have never been so many interesting literary names as there were in the past decade.

“A few years ago, The Day outlined a trend by launching a heading ‘Small/Large Cities/Villages of Ukraine.’ It would be nice to read also about Chyhyryn, Zvenyhorodka, Hlukhiv, Baturyn because they have been marginalized. People living in these cities, including local intellectuals, have faced some bad ordeals. People who live in big cities can manage their lives a lot easier, while for those living in small cities it became very difficult to live in a normal way. Therefore, the quality of spiritual life deteriorates. In my opinion, this is one of The Day’s key topics. I remember how I read about the trips by Volodymyr Panchenko with such a great interest. I could even go to some place on my own or together with the newspaper’s journalist and then make a portrait of the city or cities. We could, so to speak, lay the routes for the readers.

“I could also contribute to the topic of charity. (I have been studying it for 20 years now. I even had a book published about it.) Volodymyr Panchenko wrote about Yevhen Chekalenko and Vasyl Symerenko. Today the topic of patronship is very topical and in Ukraine there are only a few names that are well known to the wide public, while there were many of those who supported our culture and spirituality.

“I am impressed with the dynamics of The Day’s life: frequent photo exhibitions, replenishment of library in Chornukhy. By the way, one of the great achievements of the last year is the glossy supplement Route No.1 – rich (in different ways) representation of Ukraine.

“The library project is a big topic in itself. I would call it civic activity that builds Ukrainian society. In short, The Day is a socially responsible business.

“It would also be great to have the continuations of the series about the relations between Ukraine and its neighbors. For example, facts about Ukrainian-Turkish and Ukrainian-Romanian relations.

“You know, we only are capable to write Ukrainian history in a civilized world. In European countries they have separate histories of civic movements and women’s organizations, military history, political history, history of the nation, and history of the state. That’s why professional publication on this topic would mean the creation of Ukraine’s history. It should be spelled out through a variety of political prisms.”