Wednesday, July 8 2020 16:42

ArmInfo. The draft law "On Audiovisual  Media", adopted by the National Assembly on first reading, is of  serious concern to some media representatives. Thus, the Committee to  Protect Freedom of Expression, Yerevan Press Club, Media Presentation  Center, "Asparez" Journalists Club, Free Information Center, Media  Diversity Institute - Armenia, Public Journalism Club, <Journalists  for the Future> and <Journalists for Human Rights> made a statement  in this regard.

The statement said that the bill is not only not aimed at reforming  the broadcasting sector, but is also very imperfect in terms of the  principles, approaches and their wording applied.

<The bill provides for inefficient competition for licensing  excessive broadcasting using a public multiplex, it does not provide  realistic mechanisms for creating private multiplexes, does not solve  the problems of about 10 local television stations in regions that  are not digitalized, and does not create opportunities for public  broadcast reform>, the statement reads.  It is also noted that some  journalistic organizations that signed this statement submitted  several dozens of proposals to the authors of the document, and most  of them were accepted. However, it is obvious that the project does  not meet modern requirements and does not solve key issues in this  area. The main reason is that the bill is built on a problematic  conceptual basis, and in this sense it needs to be reviewed.

Another cause for concern was the fact that the authors of the  document did not want to listen to calls for sending the project for  international expertise to the Council of Europe and / or the OSCE,  which expressed their willingness to help.  <We understand that the  urgency of the bill is due to the fact that according to the current  Law on Television and Radio, licenses of television companies expire  this year, and regular tenders should be organized. However, based on  the need to adopt a new high-quality law, they can be postponed>, the  statement says.

In view of the foregoing, the authors of the statement call for  extracting a draft law on audiovisual media from circulation and send  it for international examination. Also make appropriate changes and  additions to the current Law on Television and Radio in order to  postpone the next licensed bidding. To initiate discussions and form  a working group with the participation of lawmakers of the National  Assembly, journalistic organizations, representatives of television  and radio companies, independent experts with the aim of developing a  new law regulating the concept of development of the broadcasting  sector and regulating the industry.