Letter: What Russians know about Ukraine invasion

To the Editor:

A few short weeks ago, people in Ukraine were living just as we are today. They were going to work, worrying about their children, planning for spring planting, going on yet another diet. Then the Russian dictator decided to invade Ukraine, a sovereign country with internationally recognized borders. His military has bombed hospitals and schools, tortured and massacred innocent civilians, created a humanitarian crisis by displacing millions of people, and upset the world-wide economy.

How could the Russian people not see what we are seeing on the news every day? How can they possibly believe that their country had the right to go to war against a peaceful neighboring country?

One answer is that they are not allowed to know the truth of what is going on in Ukraine. Vladimir Putin’s regime exercises complete control over all media: social media, radio and TV. Russians are flooded daily with lies about Ukrainians, the progress of the war, and the fate of their soldier sons.

Why is it that they do not realize that they are living in a world of lies? That leads to a bigger question: what exactly is the truth? How can we, here in the U.S. be sure that we are not being duped just as the Russians are? What sources of information can we trust?

I don’t know the answer except to be grateful that we have such a wide range of sources of information in this country. To me, the key is being open to using news sources from many different perspectives. I read Heather Cox Richardson on Substack every single day, read the Telegraph, listen to NPR, watch some TV news, subscribe to two national award-winning newspapers and am dubious of almost everything I read on social media. I’m not sure that this recipe adds up to something that could be called the truth, but I believe it’s better than relying one or two sources exclusively.

The more complicated the world becomes, the more important it is that we support professional journalists and free media sources. They are often the only line between truth and the dreams of a violent dictator.

Sarah Bingaman

Dixon