Georgian National Communication Commission (GNCC) upheld Media Development Foundation’s (MDF) complaint on Media Union Obieqtivi broadcasting in a non-official language, issued a warning and ordered immediate removal of Russian-language programs – “Night Studio” and “Nedelya”  – from their air. According to the GNCC’s resolution and the Georgian Law on Broadcasting, the authorized national broadcaster in...

Disinformation and propaganda are currently the biggest threat to national security, says Nino Goguadze, MP in Georgia and the former member of the parliamentary inquiry group dedicated specially to there for these issues. The group was launched earlier this year – not as a response to any specific event, Goguadze elucidates – in order to...

On January 7, a screenshot of Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili was spread on Facebook, as if she congratulated society on Easter instead of Christmas. In addition, on January 6, Facebook page “Corridor of shame” published  a post, which notes that Tamar Chergoleishvili, the editor-in-Chief of “Tabula”, refers to the celebration of Christmas on January 7...

On January 5, Georgian tabloid, Alia and online edition euronews.ge released identical articles, quoting only one source as saying that the outbreak of H1N1 flu, also known as swine flu, is raging only in Georgia and that the virus has been spread by the U.S.-funded Lugar Laboratory in Tbilisi outskirts. Alia [headline]: “Swine flu outbreak...

Today we live in the situation, where anyone can become the victim of fake news, information manipulations, deliberate propaganda and, in a broader sense, disinformation anywhere, especially those people who use the widest platform of getting information – Internet users. And voters, in turn, represent this part of potential victims. With the 2020 parliamentary elections...

Update: In May 2020, Facebook deleted pages, groups and profiles linked to Koka Kandiashvili and his media Espersona for engaging in inauthentic coordinated behaviour. Facebook clarified that the identification of this network became possible after reports from the local fact-checking organisation. The Myth Detector has revealed a scheme through the open sources, showing how Espersona,...

Russia imposed “tourism embargo” on Georgia following the June 20 developments – the day when Georgian citizens expressed protest against the arrival of Russian MP Sergei Gavrilov in the country. The public outrage erupted after Gavrilov occupied the Georgian Speaker’s seat in the Parliament chamber. Protest rallies outside the Parliament building overgrew into the confrontation...

Khatia Akhalaia remembers every detail of the stories schoolgirls told her. About a desperate teenager jumping from a high building because she was pregnant. About teachers telling them to stay at home during their menstruation. About the rumour that AIDS is transmitted through kissing. “For many of the school kids it was the first time...

Americans rape animals, the European Union wants Georgia to accept refugees and Europe opposes Orthodoxan Christianity – all those news are fake but were published by media and in Social Media in the past. And that’s perfect for Russian politics, many experts say „The main purpose of Fake News is opinion making on foreign policy...

On November 9, 2019, occupation forces detained doctor and traumatologist Vazha Gaprindashvili in Akhalgori district. He moved to the occupied territory after a 60-year-old woman was trapped in swamp and needed a doctor’s help. She was unable to move to Tbilisi due to closure of crossing point. Vazha Gaprindashvili was accused of illegal crossing of the...

On December 9, an online edition Sakinformi published an article titled “US Congress Acknowledged Interfering in Georgian Affairs”. The article concerns a statement made by the Chair of the United States House Committee on Foreign Affairs about the activities of NDI and IRI. The title of the article, according to which the US Congress acknowledged...

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) persons represent one of the most discriminated against groups in Georgia. A 2016 Pew Research Center poll found that 93% of Georgians believed homosexuality should not be accepted by society. In 2018, a poll by the National Democratic Institute (NDI) showed that only 23% of the Georgian population believed that the...