CONFERENCE TITLED "MEDIA AND DEMOCRATIZATION PROCESS OF ARMENIA" STARTS ITS PROCEEDINGS IN YEREVAN

Noyan Tapan
Jul 26, 2007

YEREVAN, JULY 26, NOYAN TAPAN. The conference titled "Media and the
democratization process of Armenia" started its proceedings in Yerevan
on July 26 on the initiative of the fund of Conrad Adenauer and with
the assistance of the Mass Media All Armenian Association. Mikhael
Vintser, the representative of the fund of Conrad Adenauer in the
Central Asia and Southern Caucasus, took part in this conference and
made an opening speech.

Aleksandre Iskandarian, the Head of the Caucasian Media Institute,
touched upon the independence of Mass Media and issues concerning
participation in democratization processes in his speech and mentioned
that the idea spread among journalists, according to which all media
are controlled by the authorities, are not acceptable. According to
him, the authorities themselves are split, they often "fight" against
each other and do this through the mass media as well. Therefore,
according to A. Iskandarian, the existence of a various, multi-coloured
media field is necessary for all the wings of the authorities.

Tigran Haroutiunian, the Head of the "Noyan Tapan Information
Analytical Center" Ltd., mentioned in his turn that in past years,
as well as at present there are real opportunities in Armenia to
found a TV channel beneficial from the point of view of business if
only the political regime of the country does not lay obstacles in
its path. In the conviction of T. Haroutiunian, the Noyan Tapan TV
company was deprived of airspace for one main reason: according to him,
"the authorities did not want anybody to have an additional lever in
the news field."
From: Baghdasarian