Categories
Journalistic Survey
Articles
Reportage
Analitic
Photo Reportage
Exclusive
Interview
Foreign Media about Georgia
Editorial
Position
Reader's opinion
Blog
Themes
Children's Rights
Women's Rights
Justice
Refugees/IDPs
Minorities
Media
Army
Health
Corruption
Elections
Education
Penitentiary
Religion
Others

Main problem of media when covering 17 May events was incorrect usage of terminology

May 22, 2013

media.ge

Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics conducted the monitoring of newscasts of TV-companies of 17 May.  Following channels have been monitored: Georgian Public Broadcaster, Rustavi 2, Imedi, Maestro/Maestro 24, Ninth Channel, Kavkasia, Adjara.

Media.ge presents the results of monitoring conducted by the Charter.

TV-channels have adequately covered the events from Rustaveli Avenue on May 17.  Viewers were able to see the footage from the rally and the incidents that happened, heard comments and assessments.  New materials and news were being aired on TV operatively.  It could be clearly seen that the TV-companies tried to maximally decrease comments containing hate speech in them; one of the presenters of the TV-9 even apologized for airing similar comments even though had tried to decrease them.  Despite such attempts the insulting texts could still be heard from the protesters against the participants of the rally organized in protest to homophobia.

The main problem identified during coverage of 17 May events, mostly in day-time newscasts, was incorrect usage of terminology.  For example:  majority of TV-companies named organizers and participants of the rally against homophobia/transphobia as: LGBT persons, LGBT representatives, LGBT society representatives, sexual minority representatives.  The titles of the reports said – “LGBT rally.”  Kavkasia TV appeared to be the exception in this trend.  Kavkasia did not have extreme news coverage.  The TV-Company started news coverage at 5 p.m. and initially named the rally as the protest of Identity or rally aimed against homophobia.

Majority of TV-Companies corrected the mistake in the afternoon when the rally in front of former Parliament was described as a rally against homophobia and headlines were changed.

However, Imedi TV still made a mistake in its main newscast. Presenters did not repeat mistakes but journalists again called the rally as Assembly of LGBT members during their stand-ups and named harassed people as representatives of sexual minorities.

Several hours after the incident occurred, TV-Channels stated in their positions, comments, footage that the assembly was planned by Identity; positions of organizers and supporters of the rally planned in protest against homophobia were not aired at all.  Newscasts of part of channels did not show that journalists had tried to obtain comments from the organizers of the failed rally.

Maestro 24 announced that they have contacted representatives of Identity although they refused to make TV-comment.  Maestro and other TV-Companies attempted to fill the given gap by assessments from different human rights defenders and civil society representatives.

Due to the usage of incorrect terminology by media it would be hard for viewers to identify what was the purpose of the 17 May rally which was failed and what was the difference between a Gay Parade and rally in protest against homophobia/transphobia.  During stand-ups journalists repeated that representatives of orthodox believers opposed representatives of sexual minorities.  There was impression that only representatives of sexual minorities participated in the rally.

Several other problems detected during 17 May rally coverage were precision of facts, unbalanced assessments and possibility to identify victims of violence.

Repeating of imprecise and unchecked information also took place; during 1 p.m. newscast TV9 presented stated that the situation got tense at the rally as “tear gas was released” and “police was forced to release tear gas.”  Later on, one of the presenters of afternoon show Shalva Ramishvili denied the given information, and the 2 p.m. presenter, without apology stated that “the information on the usage of tear gas has not been confirmed.”

By reporting unchecked information the Ninth Channel breached the principle of the Code of Conduct of Broadcasters on “protection of adequate precision.”

Georgian Public Broadcaster’s newscasts obviously gave more time to the opposers of the Identity’s rally to express their positions.  Reports lacked positions by individuals having different opinion.  Only a few public figures and small group of politicians stated that any person or group of persons has the Constitutional right to gather and enjoy freedom of expression.

Moambe released comments of Givi Sikharulidze in all newscasts who insulted and used inadequate terminology with regard to the representatives of sexual minorities. His comment was aired in Moambe’s main newscast too (8:19 p.m.) Nevertheless, Georgian Public Broadcaster bears the highest obligation not to allow airing similar expressions in its newscasts.

News