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Where there is no law, but every man does what is right in his own eyes, there is the least of real liberty
Henry M. Robert

The Day DISCOVERS UKRAINE FOR THE WORLD

13 November, 2012 - 00:00

The newspaper’s computerized version placed 52nd out of 1000 on the list of international periodical ratings.

Its weekly edition appeared in computer networks in February 1997. Several months later, it became accessible to users five times every week. Even now one can assume that its popularity has surpassed all expectations. In the launching phase, we were warned by pessimists that (a) Internet was not that popular in Ukraine (hence little access to World Wide Web) and (b) few were interested to read about Ukraine in the West. We stayed optimistic and were proved right. According to Russia’s statistics (http://counter.rambler.ru/top100, Media Group), The Day’s electronic version turned out among Ukraine’s most prestigious periodicals. WebSideStory (http://www.hitbox.com, Media Group) keeps track of the world’s periodicals, including popular US ones and its statistics place The Day 52nd (out of 1,000 access ratings), without mentioning any other Ukrainian publication.

Day in and day out, The Day is accessed by an average of 300 users, with about 22% in Ukraine and almost as many in the US; 6.5% in Canada; 3.2% in Great Britain; 2% in Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic; 1.3% in Russia, plus users in Belgium, Japan, Korea, Hungary, Italy, Sweden, Australia, Finland, Mexico, Indonesia, Hong Kong, the Netherlands, Singapore, Turkey, Greece, France, Norway, Brazil, New Zealand, Denmark, Eastern Europe, the Baltic States, and elsewhere in the CIS. About 20% of accessing users remain unidentified, so this may mean other remote corners of the globe.

We have noticed that comparatively few users access The Day in the CIS and thought that this is explained by the absence of its Russian version on Internet, so we are planning to make it available, along with the Ukrainian and English versions.

The Editorial Office receives messages from readers. Below are several short ones.

“Hi, Friends:

“You have (or we have) an excellent newspaper. Your Internet version is among the best. Go ahead! Show Zerkalo and Vedomosti that you are much more better. Best wishes, V. Chumachenko, historian and journalist, Iowa, USA.”

“Congratulations about your Home Page in Internet. Well done! Jorge Chrypko, Sao Paolo, Brazil.”

“Dear Colleagues, it is not always easy to get the latest about Ukraine. Partially, this problem is solved by The Day. Thanks for helping me with my work. G. McWesson, California, USA.”

Originally, we expected to be read mostly by ethnic Ukrainians. Computer protocol analysis shows that we have a different kind of readership, including political analysts, students, scientists, and the US military. In Canada, users are interested in reading Andrukhovych and Izdryk. The Holy See follows our religious publications, and the Harvard Slavic Department is mostly interested in today’s Ukrainian politics.

Internet is interactive, among other things. Electronic versions are probably more convenient than hard copies, in that they allow for a dialogue. Thus, we ask all those interested in our newspaper to feel free to send your messages, questions, comments, suggestions, etc. We have enough journalists and experts in other fields to provide answers and detailed explanations. And our Chief Editor Larysa Ivshyna will be glad to answer questions addressed to her.

Please write why you read The Day and about what you like or dislike about it. The most interesting comments will be carried by the newspaper soon. Please feel free to draw parallels with other electronic periodicals to show us our shortcomings. After all, one lives and learns, we are no exception to the rule. Computer access is free and we render paid services in terms of information dedicated to specific subjects. And of course, we will be happy to place your ads on our WEB page.

It is true that Internet is the planet’s most democratic and independent data medium, but it is also true that it is faced with its own problems, one being that it can be — and often is — used for disseminating falsehood, along with a sad variety of the most treacherous viruses and what has come to be known as information terrorism. Of late, the international community has been aggrieved to register racist and fascist sites. There is a growing worldwide movement for cleansing the Internet. Of course, we understand our own responsibility here. Ukraine occupies a modest place in this worldwide data network. Yet this modest amount of Internet-accessible information allows one to form a fair idea about this country in general. As for The Day, we have reason enough not to worry about the readership: our contribution to Internet is a natural sequel to our daily editorial work geared to assist the development of democracy, building a genuinely civil society in this country.

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http:// www.day.kiev.ua

Please address your suggestions and comments to:

webmaster@day.kiev.ua

 

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