Most western news media did not report on the famine. New York Times reporter Walter Duranty wrote that there was no famine in the Ukraine, even though there is evidence from British diplomatic sources that he acknowledged privately that as many as 10 million died.

Some reporters reported on the famine, though it was difficult for them to get access to the story. The central government prohibited reporters from visiting the affected areas (except for sympathetic reporters such as Duranty), and gave out misinformation. The public reaction to the news reports that did report on the famine was largely one of indifference.

The governments of Great Britain, Canada and The United States had good information about the extent of the genocide, but chose a policy of noninterference.

Part of The Terror Famine: Genocide in the Ukraine exhibit

The Ukraine Famine