Television and Radio Commission: We once again assert that there should be no foreign broadcasters in public multiplex

ArmInfo. We once again assert  that there should be no foreign broadcasters in the public multiplex,  as stated by Tigran Hakobyan, Chairman of the Television and Radio  Commission of the Republic of Armenia, during a meeting of the  Standing Parliamentary Committee on Education, Science, Culture,  Youth, Sports and Diaspora.

Noting that foreign TV companies and TV programs pose a serious  threat to Armenia, he emphasized the need for  legislative regulation   based on  events from the last 2 years.  To exclude speculation,  Hakobyan stated  that this is not only about Russian TV channels. He  mentiond that France has recently been making efforts to include two  of its TV programs in Armenia's public multiplex. In this regard,  Hakobyan touched upon the recent scandal when the French TV channel  Arte France, which is seeking inclusion, published a map of the  region excluding Armenia in its program "28 Minutes" during a report  on anti-government protests in Turkey. "Now imagine if we were to  broadcast the of Armenia," he said, adding that the  consequences are difficult to imagine.  The head of the Commission  also noted that by allowing foreign TV companies to broadcast in our  multiplex, Armenia could become a platform for an information war  between countries with which it has friendly relations - for example,  between Iran and the West.

"We have no influence over the broadcasting of cable TV channels, so  we take a liberal approach in this regard. We only assert that the  Commission does not have the authority to check the content of  foreign TV companies. And if tomorrow or the day after tomorrow some  country decides to undertake a serious information war with Armenia,  we do not have the authority to stop their broadcasting in our  country>, Hakobyan noted.  At the same time, the Chairman of the  Television and Radio Commission emphasized that there is a need to  regulate the activities of Light TV, which broadcast online. He  explained that threats related to information security, including the  mental and psychological health of children, disinformation, hate  speech, etc., are generated mainly online. , Hakobyan said.

He also pointed out a gap in the legislation regarding the definition  of hate speech. As a result, the lawsuits submitted to the court by  the Commission, they often lose. , he noted.  Among the issues  that need to be addressed, Hakobyan named the financial transparency  of public multiplex television companies and their owners, as well as  the need to improve the quality of  content of channels broadcasting  in our multiplex.