“Transparency International Georgia” publishes a traditional report on TV advertising market review. In 2023, compared to the previous year, the total advertising revenue of broadcasters increased by 18.8% (15.1 million GEL) and became 95 million GEL. TV station advertising revenues increased mainly because of pro-government broadcasters.
In 2023, as in previous years, there were frequent instances of verbal and physical attacks and violence against media representatives critical of the ruling party. While there were no cases of media representatives being unjustly arrested on unfounded charges last year, the critical media still encountered numerous challenges.
The Parliament has considered and adopted – in an accelerated manner and without a broad public discussion – changes to the Law on Broadcasting proposed by members of the parliamentary majority, which, together with other novelties, provide for the transfer of hate speech and obscenity from the realm of self-regulation (when the media themselves consider complaints and forms of responding to them in order to uphold and improve profess
One year before the parliamentary elections, when the openness of the Parliament and increased access to information about the activities of individual parliamentarians are even more important, the Parliament has become an even more closed and opaque institution for representatives of the critical media.
The media environment has deteriorated systemically in Georgia during the past year (03/05/2022-03/05/2023), which is also confirmed by assessments of international authoritative organizations.
The Media Advocacy Coalition considers unacceptable any attempt to discredit journalists simply for requesting public information, as evidenced by the cases of disclosure of personal data by administrative bodies and the illegal transfer of such data to third parties.
This report provides an overview of how anti-Western and pro-Russian disinformation narratives are disseminated in Georgia, who the main disseminators are, and how the Georgian government is countering them in the face of ongoing challenges. Findings:
Media Advocacy Coalition responds to the verdict [1] ruled by the Tbilisi Court of Appeal on January 16, 2023, according to which those convicted of committing organized group violence on media representatives on July 5, 2021, were acquitted, and the sentence imposed by the Court of First Instance was reduced. The verdict represents another step taken against journalists, freedom of expression, and democratic processes.
The judgment of the Tbilisi City Court that partially granted the claim of the Mayor of Tbilisi, Kakha Kaladze, against TV Pirveli and the journalist Maia Mamulashvili constitutes a transition of the recent dangerous tendency of pressure on the media to a new stage, when representatives of the authorities use the court to oppress critical media.