Tbilisi. Non-governmental organizations express solidarity with Nika Gvaramia and Mtavari Arkhi team. “The decision of the Tbilisi City Court of May 16, 2022, and the imprisonment of Nika Gvaramia is perceived as a warning and threat to other independent media outlets to stop critical coverage of the government’s performance, to cease watchdog activities and to refrain from the disclosure of facts that are undesirable to the government. The imprisonment of the General Director of a critical media outlet, including on the basis of managerial decisions, is yet another example of selective investigation, prosecution and conviction. We think that these kind of developments may have a negative impact on Georgia's European integration process”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. Institute for Development of Freedom of Information (IDFI) initiates a project in order to improve accessibility of public information within the framework of which offers full legal assistance to journalists and other media representatives regarding freedom of information. Legal assistance includes: Drafting applications, complaints and claims Representing in administrative bodies and courts  IDFI will cover state fees if necessary. Learn more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. According to the IDFI International organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) annually publishes Global Press Freedom index results and rankings for 180 countries in the world. Results and estimations for 2022 became available to the public today.  Index for 2022 shows significant worsening of freedom of media in Georgia compared to last year. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. On the occasion of the World Press Freedom Day, the EU and ISFED hosted a conference for media representatives to assess the Georgian media landscape and discuss existing challenges and possible solutions. One of the highlights was a keynote address from Peter Stano, Spokesperson for External Affairs of the EU. Check out some photos from the conference… Source: The EU’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. Institute for Development of Freedom of Information publishes the article “The Overview of the Censorship of the Georgian Press and Print Media”. “In contemporary Georgia, in fact, the censorship on print media does not exist. Nowadays, there is a growing tendency of coordinated disinformation campaigns and hate speech in print media. There are a number of publications that use the above-mentioned methods on purpose. Through spreading the fake news and the usage of hate speech, they enhance the polarization in the society. Also, there is a problem of pressure on different media sources, their bribing for distorting information, using them for political objectives and the decrease of the level of their freedom. According to the research carried out by the international organization Reporters without Borders in 2020, considering the global index, Georgian press holds 60th place. The conclusion emphasizes the case of Adjara TV, which experiences the pressure from the representatives of particular party, as well as the case of Afgan Mukhtarli”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. EU Ambassador Carl Hartzell awarded the winners in six categories covering print, broadcast, online, and photo journalism. Ambassador Marek Szczygieł, Head of the European Union Monitoring Mission awarded the winner of the Special Prize for conflict-sensitive journalism contributing to confidence building and peace. Meet the winners: Tamar Babuadze, Anastasia Slovinskaia, Zurab Modebadze, Khatia Ghoghoberidze, Tinatin Nachkebia, Giorgi Shengelia, Zviad Mchedlishvili. Read more… Source: eu4georgia.eu

Samtskhe-Javakheti. UNICEF, in partnership with Media Development Foundation (MDF) and with the support of USAID Georgia is launching a series of media literacy trainings for children, young people and teachers. “The slogan of the campaign is “Do not get infected with misinformation!” and aims to provide young people with information and skills to enable them to identify, verify and disseminate their knowledge about misinformation about COVID-19. The first meeting was held in Akhaltsikhe”. Find out more… Source: www.unicef.org

Tbilisi. On 18 April, Transparency International Georgia will file suit in Tbilisi City Court to defend the rights of 24 journalists from TV companies Mtavari, Formula and TV Pirveli as well as On.ge, who suffered injuries during the 5 July 2021 event, as the state failed to fulfill its constitutional duty to ensure safety of their activity. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Kvemo-Kartli. A two-day training on “Ethical media coverage of women’s rights and LGBTQI issues” was held for media representatives in Marneuli. The training covered issues and topics such as gender equality on a workplace, gender-sensitive reporting, the sensitivity and responsibility of reporting on violence against women and LGBT people, definition of terms and gender-neutral vocabulary. The trainings are carried out by the Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics with support of UN Women within the framework of the project “Ending Violence against Women and Girls in Georgia”, implemented by UN Women and UNFPA with the support of the European Union. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. On April 1-3, IDFI conducted a two-day training on effective oversight and data extraction methods. The training was attended by journalists and civil activists from different regions of Georgia - a total of 16 participants. “Theoretical and practical training included tips and recommendations – detection of public procurement fraud, budget spending and oversight, extraction of knowledge from open government data, and more. Furthermore, participants had the opportunity to obtain comprehensive information on vital issues in the context of the transparency of Beneficial ownership, as well as familiarize themselves with international platforms for investigative/data journalists and watchdogs”. Learn more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. As it is known to the public, GYLA represents and protects the victims' rights of the violent events of July 5-6, 2021. At this stage, organization is involved in the case of 19 people. “On April 4, Tbilisi City Court announced sentences in the case of Lekso Lashkarava, Miranda Baghaturia, Vakhtang Kareli, Ilia Tvaliashvili, Rati Tsverava, and Dea Mamiseishvili. To thoroughly examine the matter, GYLA's lawyers apply to the Tbilisi City Court with a request to hand over a reasoned/substantiated sentence following the law”. Read more… Source: gyla.ge

Tbilisi. Transparency International-Georgia appeals to the Public Defender of Georgia to establish a possible discrimination and obstruction of labor activities against members of the Public Broadcaster's “Akhali Kvira” program, Imeda Darsalia, Sopho Zedelashvili and Tamta Janadze. “The Georgian legislation guarantees the independence of the Public Broadcaster from political and commercial influence. It is important that the journalists are able to carry out their professional activities in an environment free from censorship”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

Tbilisi. The practice of creating obstacles for independent journalists from the Russian Federation while entering Georgia in parallel with the ongoing war in Ukraine raises doubts that David Frenkel, was not allowed to enter Georgia on a discriminatory basis due to his journalistic work. The member organization of the coalition "Rights Georgia" on behalf of David Frenkel has already submitted the administrative complaint before the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Georgia and demanded the annulment of the decision on denial of entry. Read more... Source: rights.ge

Tbilisi. On March 9, 2022 one of the last court hearings against Nika Gvaramia is scheduled in the Tbilisi City Court. The court might pass a verdict at the same hearing. “Transparency International Georgia after assessing the case materials as well as considering Georgian legislation, court practice, legal doctrine, and the facts of the case came to the conclusion that it has not been proved that Nika Gvaramia committed the crime of embezzlement of property rights, commercial bribery, creation and use of the false official document and money laundering. A proper assessment of circumstances related to the charges against Nika Gvaramia is important for ensuring the rights and freedoms of individuals, as well as for the further development of case law. Therefore, we hope that the court will make a lawful and reasoned decision”. Read more… Source: transparency.ge

The web page EUvsDisinfo publishes the blogpost: The Kremlin’s playbook: fabricating pretext to invade Ukraine – more myths... EUvsDisinfo established in 2015 to better forecast, address, and respond to the Russian Federation’s ongoing disinformation campaigns affecting the European Union, its Member States, and countries in the shared neighbourhood.  “Recently, we examined and debunked seven of the most prevalent and dangerous myths related to Ukraine”. Read more… Source: euvsdisinfo.eu

Tbilisi. The EUNEIGHBOURS east website publishes the blogpost: Be aware of disinformation: Think before you share. “These days it is more important than ever to be careful about disinformation online. Here are some tips on how to check content online”. Read more… Source: euneighbourseast.eu

Tbilisi. Media advocacy coalition calls on the Parliament of Georgia, the Communications Commission and operators of the electronic communications network to take effective measures to stop the operation of propaganda media outlets controlled by the Russian state and other media outlets of the Kremlin in Georgia. Read more… Source: transparency.ge Photo: Euronews Georgia

Tbilisi. According to the information of the International Society for Fair Elections and Democracy, after being removed by Facebook (Meta) several times, having moved to other platforms and creating a TV channel, Alt-Info became active again on Facebook. “This time, the pro-Russian group has found an easier and more stable way to reach Facebook audience, as live broadcasts from the main page of the organization „Alt-News“ are now disseminated by pages, groups and Facebook profiles associated with the Conservative Movement party”. Read more… Source: isfed.ge

Tbilisi. On February 10, 2022, the students of Disinformation and Propaganda Studies, the joint program of IDFI and the University of Georgia, as well as to the students of the School of Social Sciences, UG had a chance to attend the workshop. “The workshop was devoted to the matters such as debunking fake news spread by the governments and the military on the frontline. Fact-checking mainstream media and the outlets of Russian proxies in the “Grey zones” from Crimea to Abkhazia”. Read more… Source: idfi.ge

Tbilisi. International Society for Fair Election (ISFED) prepared the survey: TikTok - Emerging Propaganda Ecosystem. “TikTok channels used for political campaigning appeared in Georgia in 2020, although they became noticeably active in 2021. As a result, attempts to influence voters’ opinions in the pre-election period went beyond the scale of what was seen on Facebook. Due to the activity of politically motivated actors, ISFED examined the pre-election trends and information manipulations on the platform”. Read more… Source: isfed.ge

Guria. On January 25, Guria Regional HUB hosted the awarding ceremony of the media competition winners. The competition aimed to promote the works of the regional CSOs and civic activists. The winners are: Journalists - Tamta Dolidze (Guria TV), Giorgi Girkelidze and Marina Chikhladze (Guria News) The media competition was organised within the framework of the EU and Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung funded project “Civil Society STAR Initiative”. Read more… Source: The organization’s page on the social network

Tbilisi. EWMI-Access publishes the video telling about scientific, innovative and engaging methods that ACCESS partners used to counter disinformation and fake news and educate society about these topics. The video was prepared by Movement. Source: The organization’s page on the social network