On June 4, a fragment from a TV show aired by TV channel “Formula” was circulated on Facebook. In the video, journalist Eliso Jariashvili is seen sitting in a car, asking the driver: “Let’s imagine there is no critical media in the country — what would reality be like?” The man responds: “Everything will be fine.” The video creates the impression that the respondent is expressing a negative opinion about opposition-aligned TV channels.
A clipped version of the video from “Formula’s” show is being circulated, which does not reflect the respondent’s actual position. In reality, in the full footage, the man expresses the opposite view. In response to the question about media, he says that, in fact, everything would not be fine and gives a critical assessment of how pro-government media cover events.
On June 3, “Formula” aired the show “With the People,” hosted by journalists Eliso Jariashvili and Guram Rogava. That episode was dedicated to new laws regarding media and its regulation. The show included a street interview segment where Jariashvili asked citizens what they thought about the Georgian media, how they assessed the recent legislative changes related to media, and the ongoing developments. It is a clipped video of one of the respondents from this street interview that is now circulating on social media.
During the street interview, the journalist spoke with a man in a car and initially asked him about media-related issues. In response to the question (at 38:20) regarding his thoughts on changes related to media regulation, the man said: “They don’t want people who express freedom of speech, that’s why they’re doing this.” The next question — and part of his answer — appears in the video circulating on social media. When asked, “Let’s imagine there is no critical media in the country — what would reality be like?” the man replies:
“– Everything will be fine.
(Journalist) – Really?
– No, not really, I’m just saying it like that.
[…]
(Journalist) – What’s going on with the government channels, do you know?
– I don’t know, I don’t watch them. If you watch them, it means everything’s fine nowadays. May God make it so, but I don’t see anything good.”
In addition to media-related issues, the journalist also asked the respondent about the population’s problems. The man identified poverty and violence as the main issues. Thus, he positively assesses the role of opposition media, but dislikes pro-government media and is critical of the authorities. The video circulating on social media presents the opposite and has been clipped in a way that makes it seem like the respondent disapproves of critical media outlets.
An identical video can be found on a TikTok account named brdzeni.kritikosi, which is likely the original source. Several other videos posted on that account have a similar visual style: white text on a red background.
Journalists have often been the target of discrediting campaigns on social media. Frequently, false information or visual manipulations are used against them, with the aim of damaging the reputation of TV channels critical of the government. “Myth Detector” has previously verified many such videos — some turned out to be fabricated, while others were shared without full context or in a manipulative way.
About the Source:
Gabi Kamaev is a Facebook account that supports the political party “Georgian Dream.” On his page, he frequently posts pro-government content and materials that discredit the opposition. “Myth Detector” has previously fact-checked disinformation spread by Gabi Kamaev.
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