Pressure to Report: Georgian Media Struggles for an Independent Voice

Six months after President Mikheil Saakashvili pledged to protect the freedom of the press in Georgia, members of the media and local non-governmental organizations argue that media barons desirous of good ties with the government are still pressuring journalists.

In a September 9, 2005 speech, Saakashvili referred to anyone who pressured Georgian media as his "enemy" and any attack on free speech as a personal assault. "If somebody dared to put pressure on [the] media, I would be his worst enemy," he said. "It is an attack on my own prerogatives, ideals and authority."

The speech came in the wake of a series of journalism scandals, including the August 2005 arrest of Shalva Ramishvili, co-owner of the pro-opposition 202 television station, on charges of blackmail, and the brutal beating of newspaper journalist Saba Tsitsikashvili, who was investigating the city of Gori's controversial purchase of an agricultural firm.

Opposition newspapers associated both incidents with dwindling government tolerance for inquisitive journalists. But media observers and activists argue that much of the blame needs to be placed on media owners themselves.

Zurab Khrikadze, a media analyst for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) mission to Georgia, argues that while the pressure placed on Georgian journalists is nearly impossible to prove, it seriously affects the quality of journalism in the country. "Enemy number one for professionalism is the lack of independence," Khrikadze said. "If they [Georgian journalists] do not become more independent, they cannot increase their professional skills. A lot of journalists understand they are not working for the public, but for the [media outlet] owners."

However, Khrikadze added that the degree of pressure is largely a matter of guesswork. "When they [journalists] speak in general terms, they say