From: Justin Burke (JBurke@sorosny.org)
Date: Thu Apr 24 2003 - 11:36:06 EDT
YEREVAN PRESS CLUB WEEKLY NEWSLETTER
APRIL 19-24, 2003
HIGHLIGHTS:
APRIL 24 IS THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE COMMEMORATION DAY
YEREVAN PRESS CLUB MONITORING THE MEDIA COVERAGE OF ELECTIONS TO THE RA
NA
MEDIA AND PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS-2003 ON THE YPC WEB SITE
ABOUT 30 JOURNALISTS RUNNING IN ELECTION RACE
RESEARCH ON KARABAGH CONFLICT
APRIL 24 IS THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE COMMEMORATION DAY
April 24 is the Commemoration Day of Victims of Armenian Genocide in the
Ottoman Turkey in 1915. According to Article 28 of RA Law "On Television
and Radio", on the state morning days commercials and entertaining
programs are prohibited for broadcasting on Public TV and Radio of
Armenia. Thus, despite the official election campaign that started on
April 21, there will be no political advertising of the RA National
Assembly candidates on today's air of public service broadcasters.
YEREVAN PRESS CLUB MONITORING THE MEDIA COVERAGE OF ELECTIONS TO THE RA
NA
On April 21 Yerevan Press Club started to monitor the Armenian media
coverage of elections to the RA National Assembly to be conducted on May
25. The monitoring is made under a project supported by the Open Society
Institute and covers the period of official election campaign (April 21
- May 23, 2003). The research of YPC is focused on the newscasts,
analytic and discussion programs of the main TV and radio companies of
the country, as well as the political adverting in 18 media (eight TV
and radio channels, and ten newspapers). In particular, for the
editorial programs of broadcast media the airtime and frequency/context
of mentionings of parties/party blocs, taking part in the elections by
proportional system, will be recorded. The preliminary and final
findings of YPC monitoring will be presented to the public.
MEDIA AND PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS-2003 ON THE YPC WEB SITE
On the web site of Yerevan Press Club a new section "Media and
Parliamentary Elections-2003" (http://www.ypc.am) has been opened. The
page features legislative documents, regulating the media activities for
the period of election to the RA National Assembly, the lists of
parties/party blocs, taking part in the elections by proportional
representation system, the chronicle of election campaign. The section
will be updated and replenished throughout the election campaign.
ABOUT 30 JOURNALISTS RUNNING IN ELECTION RACE
Among the candidates running for seats at the RA National Assembly there
are about 30 journalists who have worked or still work for the media of
the country. Most of our colleagues take part in the parliamentary
elections of 2003 by proportional representation system. Three of them
are among the first three candidates of the party lists. The founder and
the head of "ALM" media holding Tirgan Karapetyan opens the list of the
Popular Party candidates, of which he is the chairman, as well as runs
for a single member constituency. The second lines in the lists of
Christian Democratic Union of Armenia and "Orinats Yerkir" party are
taken by Anaida Martirosyan, the head of public and political program
department of "Kentron" TV company, and a veteran deputy (of the two
previous summons of RA NA) Sergo Eritsyan, the author and the host of
"Opinion" program at the Public TV and Public Radio of Armenia,
respectively. Many media heads and well-known journalists are
represented on the lists of other parties/party blocs. Thus, numbers 11
and 17 of "Dashnaktsutiun" party are the chief editor of "Nork" magazine
Ruben Hovsepian and the head of "Yerkir" weekly Gegham Manoukyan. The
"Dashnkatsutiun" list actually features the biggest number of "fourth
estate" representatives (seven). Two of four colleagues on the list of
Ramkavar-Azatakan Party of Armenia are the political observer of
"Armenia" TV company Robert Mavisakalyan (number 8) and the deputy
chairwoman of the National Commission on Television and Radio Shamiram
Aghabekian (number 21). The "Powerful Motherland" party list has the
creative director of "AR" TV company Merujan Ter Gulanian (parliament
member in 1990-1995, 1995-1999) as number 15 and the chief editor of
"Grakan Tert" newspaper Karine Khodikyan as number 18. The majoritarian
system candidates include the head of the news service of "Shant" TV
company Nver Mnatsakanian and the former editor of "Hayastani Communist"
newspaper Norik Petrosian.
The biographies of most of the colleagues named above can be viewed at
the site of Yerevan Press Club www.ypc.am in the section of "Who is Who
in Armenian Journalism".
It should also be noted that this impressive number of "fourth estate"
representatives running in elections is not a record. In 1999, the
previous election race, they exceeded 40 (seven became NA deputies).
Yerevan Press Club wants to hope that those of our colleagues who will
become deputies will make every effort to improve the media-legislation,
first of all to pass a truly progressive Law "On Mass Communication",
the draft of which, having caused the strong protests of the
journalistic community, luckily, was not adopted by the Parliament of
the departing summon.
RESEARCH ON KARABAGH CONFLICT
On April 22 at the Journalists Union of Armenia the presentation of
brochure "Karabagh Conflict and the Prospects of Its Resolution" was
held. This edition was published under a year-long project
"Armenian-Azerbaijani/Azerbaijani-Armenian Information Center",
implemented by Yerevan and Baku Press Clubs and supported by the OSI
Network Media Program.
The book represents the findings of focus group research among various
population segments on the possible solutions to the Karabagh conflict
as well as the results of the five-month monitoring of the media
coverage on the issue. The research was conducted simultaneously
(spring-summer 2002) by single methodology in Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Mountainous Karabagh and was a logical continuation of "Karabagh
Conflict in the Mirror of Media and Public Opinion of Armenia,
Azerbaijan and Mountainous Karabagh" project, implemented in 2001 by YPC
and BPC with the participation of Stepanakert Press Club and supported
by OSI Network Media Program.
The electronic versions of the studies above in Russian and English
languages can be viewed on the web site www.pressclubs.org in the
section "Publications".
When reprinting or using the information above, reference to the Yerevan
Press Club is required.
You are welcome to send any comment and feedback about the Newsletter
to: pressclub@ypc.am
Subscription for the Newsletter is free. To subscribe or unsubscribe
from this mailing list, please send a message to: info@ypc.am
Editor of YPC Newsletter - Elina POGHOSBEKIAN
____________________________________________
Yerevan Press Club
39/12 Mesrop Mashtots Avenue
375009, Yerevan, Armenia
Tel.: (+ 3741) 53 00 67; 53 35 41
Fax: (+3741) 53 56 61; 53 76 62
E-mail: pressclub@ypc.am
Web Site: www.ypc.am
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