CHIEF EDITORS OF ARMENIAN NEWSPAPERS EXCHANGED OPINIONS ON THE COVERAGE OF THE PRE-ELECTION CAMPAIGN

Mediamax
February 11, 2008

Yerevan /Mediamax/. Chief Editor of "Yerkir" weekly Spartak Seyranian
stated in Yerevan today that "many of the Armenian newspapers
replicate hatred".

Mediamax reports that, speaking at a news conference, devoted to
the coverage of the pre-election campaign by print media, Spartak
Seyranian stated that the newspapers "often publish accusations the
candidates pour on each other, taken out from the context, forgetting
that after the elections life will continue".

At that, Seyranian noted, "newspapers try to satisfy the demands of
the society, which, unfortunately, prefers gutter press and disdains
from elite journalism".

The Chief Editor of "Azg" newspaper Hakob Avetikian expressed his
disagreement to such assessment of the society preferences. According
to him, "main part of the readers is a serious and thinking segment
of the society".

Hakob Avetikian stated that, according to preliminary calculations,
the number of such readers makes about 120 thousand people, "and this
is not a small number for Armenia".

Chief Editor of "Azg" newspaper expressed opinion that in the process
of the pre-election campaign people prefer print media rather than
TV-channels. In this context, one can say with confidence that the
print press pays the most influential role and this should not be
neglected, Hakob Avetikian stated.

The editors also noted that the pre-election staffs of the candidates
are reluctant to cooperate with the newspapers, preferring TV, and
in such cases it is difficult to secure pluralism of opinions.