Lela Khechoshvili, Kakheti News Center
In accordance to the Law on Broadcasting, news programs and public-political programs shall not be sponsored. The law also prohibits placement of commercial advertisements in the news programs which last less than 30 minutes. According to the same law, administrative institution cannot sponsor the program. Kakheti region based local TV-stations and self-governmental institutions breach the law.
According to the Georgian National Communication Commission (GNCC), five local TV-stations hold broadcasting licenses in Kakheti region: TV-Company TV-1 (Akhmeta), TV-Company “Tvali” (Sagarejo), TV-Company “LTV” (Lagodekhi), TV –Company “Gurjaani” (Gurjaani) and TV-Company “Tanamgzavri” (Telavi). TV-companies from Akhmeta and Sagarejo districts have been broadcasting for two year but they vindicate their licenses through violation.
Lagodekhi TV-Station
Ltd “Ekom” runs the Lagodekhi based TV-Company. The founders of the Ltd are Evgeni Petrusov with 60% of share and Simon Kuksin with 40 %. Ltd “Ekom” was registered by the Lagodekhi district court in 1997. The director of the company is Lali Khubulava, the wife of Evgeni Petrusov.
Lagodekhi TV-station is receives funds for news reproting from the Lagodekhi district budget. In 2008, when parliamentary election was held in Georgia, the local budget allocated 23 000 GEL to the TV-company; in 2009 they received 9 925 GEL. “Ekom” Ltd and Lagodekhi district administration have signed agreement for 2010 too. The agreement dated by January 4 is signed by Lagodekhi district governor Gia Gozalishvili and by the director general of the Ltd “Ekom” Lali Khubulava. They agreed to provide news service for the Lagodekhi district administration; more precisely: “The TV-Company should broadcast sessions of the district municipal board and district administration; publish information about their competitions, announcements and other important news whenever it is requested.” According to the same agreement, a three-minute telecast in the weekly news program “Kviris Kronika” as well as in the daily news program “Kronika” costs 250 GEL; the three-minute telecast in the live TV-program “Studio- Dialogue”, which lasts 50 minutes, costs 250 GEL as well. The agreement is valid before December 31, 2010.
In accordance to the Article 69 of the Law on Broadcasting, news programs and telecasts about social and political issues shall not be sponsored. Article 2 Part rr clarifies that: “Sponsorship” is direct or indirect financing or co-financing of program by a person, in order to promote his name, trademark, image, production or activity.”
“In accordance to the Article 67 of the Law on Broadcasting, an administrative authority, members of an administrative authority or its employees, any political party, leader or official of a political party, coalition, and electoral subject shall not sponsor programs.” Article 2 of the General Administrative Code of Georgia states that "Administrative agency" means any state or local self-government agency or institution and any natural or artificial person that exercises public authority in accordance with law,” said Lawyer Tamar Gurchiani.
Despite prohibition, according to the data of October 30, 2010, Lagodekhi district administration has transferred 8 000 GEL to the local TV-Station.
According to the official documents – protocols # 1, 2, 4, 5 of the TV-Company, which we have requested from the Lagodekhi district administration, in 2010 the state funded telecasts were released in daily news and weekly news programs. For example: on April 4 – “personnel changes in the district administration”; “rehabilitation activities of the water-system;” on April 11 – “activities of the District Election Commission;” on April 12 – district governor Giorgi Gozalishvili was invited to the program “Studio-Dialogue” and he spoke about the implemented activities in the district;” on April 18 – “installation of gas meters”; on May 2 “activities of the District Election Commission;” on May 9 – “Session of the Municipal Board – results of four-year-activities;” on May 16 – “Gasification of Kabala Village;” on May 23 – “Activities of the district election commission;” on July 4 – “Visit of the Regional Governor;” “Session of the District Administration;” on July 18 – “Meeting with IDPs;” on August 12 – “Rehabilitation of kindergarten in Ninigori;” on August 19 – “Rehabilitation of drinking-water system in Chavchavadze Street”, etc.
We asked the chairman of the Lagodekhi municipal board Gia Gozalishvili why he had breached the law on broadcasting when they signed agreement with the Lagodekhi district TV-Company and transferred money to them from the local budget.
“When signing the agreement we requested to publish our announcements, to broadcast sessions of the municipal board and everything what we could have ordered.”
-Mr. Gia, in accordance to the Law on Broadcasting, the owner of the broadcasting license shall inform its audience about the ongoing events in their coverage area. Why do you waste the budget money on it when the TV-Company was entitled to broadcast local events?
-We wanted them to report about everything what was done in our district. It is clear that it was their obligation but what should we have done if they did not do it?
-Before you occupied the position of the chairman of the municipal board you were district governor and you had signed the agreement with the TV-company. Did not you know that the district administration did not have right to sponsor news programs or telecasts about social and political issues?
--We did not mention the news program in the agreement.
-The protocols on implemented activities list the telecasts which were funded by the district administration.
-We did not fund all of them. The TV-Company was providing us with the information about their monthly activities and only small part of them was ordered by us.
-Why did the district administration transfer the money for all activities then?
-The TV-Company might have provided incorrect reports. I am responsible for the conditions estimated by the agreement.”
Lagodekhi district TV-Company stopped releasing news programs. For example, in December they prepared only two releases and in one of them the session of the municipal board was covered.
TV-Company “Gurjaani”
Like Lagodekhi district TV-Company, Gurjaani based TV-Company also breaches the law.
In 2010, local budget allocated 34 242 GEL for the TV-Company “Gurjaani” for prompt and impartial covering of the ongoing events in the district”. In 2009, TV-Company “Gurjaani” received 31 860 GEL from the local government and 24 000 GEL in 2008.
In accordance to the information published on the official website of the TV-Company http://gurjaanitv.ge/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=164&Itemid=198, interested people can sponsor TV-programs. They can see list of prices on the website: sponsorship of the daily news program (released only on working days and four times per day) costs 1 000 USD that is 240 ads throughout a month; general sponsorship costs 1 500 GEL and it is also 240 ads throughout the month. TV-Company also offers interested people to sponsor news-analytic talk-show “Power of Powerless People”
though the project is implemented with the financial support of the Foundation “Open Society – Georgia”. In 2009, the talk-show was sponsored by the Gurjaani based auto-service complex “Kakheti’s Guli” whose owner is Davit Katamashvili – that time Gurjaani district deputy governor. Prices for the sponsorship of the talk-show and general sponsorship are equal to the prices of the news programs. The TV-company offers the interested people and organizations to sponsor other programs too: “Dialogue,” “Guest”, “Health”.
Executive director of the TV-Company “Gujaani” Levan Aleksishvili clarified that news program had never been sponsored. “We ceased our partnership with Davit Katamashvili, who sponsored our program “Power of Powerless People” with 60 liters of fuel per month, after he occupied the position of the district deputy governor,” said Aleksishvili.
Davit Katamashvili occupied the position of the deputy governor on January 29, 2009 and worked till November 9, 2009. Anchor of the talk-show “Power of Powerless People” Levan Aleksishvili used to announce including March of 2009 that the program was sponsored by auto-service complex “Kakheti’s Guli.”
The receive-acceptance protocols (# 4, 11, 19, 21, 46, 49, and 54) on the implemented activities, signed by the Gurjaani district administration and TV-Company “Gujaani” in 2010 confirm that the telecasts funded by the district administration were released in the news programs that are violation of the Law on Broadcasting. More precisely, according to the official documents, 17 telecasts were released from January 1 till January 31 in 2010 and the district administration paid 2 658 GEL for it; 16 telecasts were released on February 1-28 and the district administration paid 2 658 GEL again. Before the elections, the district administration increased the funding of the Company at 500 GEL. State funded telecasts were again released in news programs.
The TV-Company received funding for the invitation of guests – favorite people of the local authority – in their program “Dialogue”. For example, on April 26, head of Gurjaani district education resource center Lali Gabitashvili was invited to the “Dialogue”. According to the invoice released in April, the administration paid 386 GEL to the TV-Company for the “service.” On April 29, the National Movement (ruling party) nominated Lali Gabitashvili to be their candidate for the municipal elections.
On April 29, the evening news program reported that “the National Movement nominated their candidates in every district of Kakheti region.” According to the April invoice, TV-Company received 150 GEL from the district administration for the three-minute telecast. Several hours before the telecast was released, the information and photos about violation of the Election Code when nominating candidates in Gurjaani district were spread in the internet. More precisely, interim district governor, officials of district administration and municipal board, other public servants attended the nomination of the candidates though it was prohibited by the law. Transparency International – Georgia filed complaint regarding this fact to the Central Election Commission and Georgian Young Lawyers Association spread information about it. The TV-Company “Gurjaani” did not care about the violation.
“I cannot recall what you are speaking about. If you have any complaints about any telecasts, then you should have informed the TV-Company about this fact immediately and not 8 months later,” said the executive director of the TV-Company “Gujaani.”
The TV Company “Gurjaani” did not pay attention to the protest statement of the Caucasus Environmental NGO Network (CENN) published on March 24, 2010. The CENN protested mass chopping of the coniferous trees in the town under decree of the Gurjaani district governor and requested the government to stop the process immediately. The statement and photo-materials of the environmental organization were published in the internet. The TV-Company did not pay attention to the fact either.
The TV-Company did not publish information about the incident in the village of Vazisubani in Gurjaani district on November 27, 2010 when four innocent people were arrested by police officers according to the order of the Kakheti regional governor Giorgi Ghviniashvili.
“Of course, there are some topics which we avoid publishing. Of course we report truth but we are not as severe as we have to be,” said director general of the TV-Company “Gurjaani” Tamar Abelashvili in her interview with the Radio “Liberty” in 2009.
The TV-Company “Gurjaani” released the telecasts funded by the district administration till July 30 of 2010. On July 30, the parties introduced changes into the agreement and “the ongoing events in the district shall be covered in the program “Dialogue.” And the price of one minute was 12 GEL.
Levan Aleksishvili, executive director of the TV-Company “Gurjaani”: “We managed to remove this money from the news programs and separate news and advertising telecasts from each other. On July 30, 2010, TV Company “Gurjaani” and Gurjaani district administration signed amended agreement which entitled the administration to purchase broadcasting time only in the program “Dialogue” and the price of one minute is 12 GEL as well as the advertising time for ads and running subtitles. The TV Company monthly reports the administration about their implemented activities and the latter pays for the service based on this report. As for the program “Dialogue”, it has sign “R” when the program is running in order to indicate that it is advertising program. In doing so, we act in compliance with the law, and on the other hand we act in accordance to the Ethic Standards of the Broadcasting Company. Those, who have doubt that the paid money might impact the independence of the programs, I suggest them to see our programs on the website www.gurjaanitv.ge if they are unable to watch them on TV. Till July 30th of 2010, there were certain inaccuracies towards the law. After this period, the relationship with the local government was given the legal frame and the advertising and informative materials were distinguished in reality.”
In 2009-2010, the LLC Gurjaani partnering with NGO Violence Protection and Civil Education Regional Center received 6 grants from international donor organizations “for TV and public development.” The head of this NGO is Levan Aleksishvili who is also an executive director of the TV Company Gurjaani. According to the Kakheti News Center, the funds received from grants amounted to 100 thousand US dollars. Despite the possibility of financial independence from the local government, the TV Company did not refuse to render service to the local government.
“We are selling broadcasting time to the advertising program Dialogue. This time is bought by Gurjaani Municipality Government and the program is run under R sign that means that it has an advertising nature. This is not sponsoring. This is purchasing broadcasting time by the self-governing body,” states Levan Aleksishvili.
It is significant that the studio Monitor, which is preparing investigative films on the facts of human rights violations, gave several films to the TV Company Gurjaani for free to show in the district, but the TV company did not broadcast the journalistic investigations of the Monitor.
According to the executive director of TV Company Gurjaani, TV Company is preparing journalistic investigations independently. “It is not up to Gela Mtivlishvili to decide what to broadcast on TV,” said the executive director of the TV Company.
Zakaria Iaganashvili, the head of the Gurjaani Municipal Board: “The main point is that the TV renders service to us and the population knows what we are doing in the region. We need to have contact with the population. We are paying money from the budget for this.”
Giorgi Sibashvili, the Deputy Governor of Kakheti region: “It is an exclusive authority of the local government to purchase TV service. I think this is not bad because citizens should constantly have information about ongoing events in the region; they will be more involved in the current processes since their opinions and remarks are systematically considered.”
- According to the law, an administrative body cannot sponsor the news programs. In case of Gurjaani and Lagodekhi TVs, the local governments finance news programs.
- They are not sponsors; they are our clients. In this particular case, the district administration had to order service at the TV-company in order to make the information available for the society. This is the problem of the TV-Company because they did not release information on TV which was within their competence.”
Levan Aleksishvili responded to the comment of the Kakheti Region deputy governor and said that the “TV-company is not going to advertise any institution – commercial or administrative agency - without corresponding reimbursement.
Advertisement
In accordance to the Article 64 of the Law on Broadcasting, advertisements shall not interrupt the following programs news, current affairs, religious, election debate programs and documentary films with duration less than 30 minutes.
Kakheti News Center monitored the News Programs of the LTV and Gurjaani –TV from October 30 till November 15. The news programs last 12-20 minutes. Despite that, both TV-companies split the program with commercial advertisements in the middle. After the Gurjaani TV Company learned that the Kakheti News Center was working on the journalistic investigation, the TV-Company has not placed advertisements in news programs since November 20.
60 000 GEL is envisaged for media service in the 2011 budget of Gurjaani district. In comparison with 2010, the sum was reduced at 14 000 GEL. As for Lagodekhi district budget, 44 000 GEL is allocated for media service for the next year.
Expert Evaluation
The findings of the journalistic investigation were introduced to the experts who evaluated the facts.
Media-analytic Mathias Hutter for the Transparency International – Georgia said that local authorities are main source of income for the regional TV-stations. “Without funding from the local authorities many local TV-Stations would have stopped functioning long before. Since the existence of independent TV-Companies depend on the funding from the local authority, it is too difficult for them to stay independent at some point. When a TV-Station agrees to sell its news program to a sponsor, it simultaneously faces the danger of losing trust among audience. If the TV-Company allows the sponsor to control its editorial policy, then we cannot speak about journalistic activities of the TV-Company,” said Mathias Hutter.
Head of the non-governmental organization “Institute of Civil Development” journalist Ia Antadze thinks that agreements between local TV-Companies and the district administrations is ugly practice. “This practice should be eradicated or transformed into a better process. The media-owners, media-experts, public defender and journalists should discuss this problem and decide how to put an end to this ugly system when the local authority unfairly, non-transparently, through violation of market economy funds various programs or media-sources,” said Ia Antadze.
Journalist Zviad Koridze said a telecast or a program cannot be advertised. “The funded telecast is under sponsor’s financial influence and it is completely inadmissible.”
“If any governmental or private institution wants to buy TV-time, they can pay for advertisement. The requirement of the agreement between the Gurjaani TV-Company and district administration – “the TV-station shall cover ongoing events in the district” – is the direct obligation of the TV-Company and the district budget shall not allocate funds for it. The local budget is very generous when broadcasting company is open to accept money.”
-For example, the public-political program “Dialogue” of the TV-Company Gurjaani runs under “R” sign.
Sign “R” is the post-soviet illness. It is illegal when a news program has functions of the advertisement.
The article was prepared within the project “Investigative Group of Journalists in Kakheti” with financial support of the “Eurasian Partnership Foundation” in the framework of the EU funded project - “Strengthening the Media’s Role as a Watchdog Institution in Georgia”.
The contents of this article are the sole responsibility of the Kakheti News Center and cannot be taken as to reflect the views of the European Union and Eurasian Partnership Foundation.
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