Telekrytika, a Ukrainian Web-based media watchdog, said that as much as $80,000 will change hands for a leading politician to ensure a guest appearance on a popular TV show, while a 20-second TV sound bite in a news bulletin may cost just $200.
Early last month, Yanukovych endured an embarrassing moment when a dozen Ukrainian journalists stood up and raised anti-censorship banners as he hailed Ukraine's march to greater media freedom at a World Newspaper Congress in Kiev.
Even as he spoke, his security guards ripped banners saying "stop censorship" from protesters' hands.
