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GALINA DAVIDYAN: LESS AND LESS SPACE LEFT FOR HIGH-STANDARD MEDIA
http://arka.am/en/news/interview/galina_davidyan_less_and_less_space_left_for_high_ standard_media/
Eurasian integration is becoming a major trend today. May creation
of an idea-driven common media help promote Eurasian integration
processes? FEAM-2012 participant, general director of Novosti-Armenia
international news agency Galina Davidyan answers the questions.
- What do you think, do the Eurasian project proposals keep up with
the current global political and economic tendencies, and what is
media's role in the process?
- In principle, all the processes toward integration, which help
increasing transparency and uniting around a common interest platform,
may be considered positive. In today's rapidly changing world, where
you need to run not to be stuck, it is probably one of the means to
withstand political challenges and economic crises. People, societies
and, more globally, states are built in a way that they need first to
come closer to each other, then to scatter, while moving forward. It
should be noted that both processes have lots of supporters and
opponents. And probably the time came to gather stones together,
not cast them away, and to see obvious advantages of rapprochement.
In particular, it is time to see the huge potential of the Eurasian
Economic Space with 170 million populations, open markets, free flow
of capital and goods, and spectacular opportunities for mass media.
Development of modern technologies has driven progress forward in all
fields and gave mass media outlets incredibly powerful instruments
to influence large audiences. Today media cannot imagine themselves
being outside the Internet. Social networking websites enter into
dialogue with traditional media more and more often. It is a process
that cannot be stopped. Practically all players of media market
understand this well and try to keep up with the modern trends.
- Will a common media space formed around certain ideas help promote
the European integration initiatives?
- Everything depends on what content the ideas have. Of course,
no consolidation can occur and exist on its own. There are some
universal, political and economic interests and there are ideas of
principal importance to certain societies.
For instance, today Armenia's core national doctrine includes
recognition of the 1915 genocide of Armenians and the settlement of
Karabakh conflict. Now, here is a question - are journalists from
other countries willing to study these issues, perceive them like
their own concepts and communicate them to their societies using
all the possible instruments of multimedia journalism? Of course,
a counter-question may also be asked: will be the Armenian society
concerned about resettlement of Middle Asian Koreans in CIS countries.
Therefore, I think that Eurasian integration initiatives and common
media space formed around them should be based on reasonability and
common ideas as promoting factors, including mass media.
- In general, do Armenian mass media meet modern requirements? Can
Armenian media outlets be referred to as high-quality and professional?
- Unfortunately, today we can hardly claim we have high-standard
and professional media outlets in Armenia. Moreover, we should admit
that our mass media become more and more financially dependable. In
fact, media market entities produce uncompetitive products, but still
continue functioning, with no loss suffered despite small circulation
and big return. Some Internet media produce weak yellowish content and
use copy-paste. But they still show good visit statistics, and promote
themselves in social networks zealously and no journalism principle
can stop them. They survive from sponsors' subsidies and work them
off well. Unfortunately, our media are split up into political and
economic camps and serve the interest of the respective forces.
Local media market does not make special efforts - today's consumer
is willingly using almost all what is offered. Less and less space
is left for high-standard and serious mass media outlets.
Small local media market becomes even smaller as it is divided into
interest groups and develops bypassing market competition. Besides,
doubtful information sources appear spontaneously in the cyber space.
All this creates problems for serious media.
Can this situation be reversed? Yes, if the attitude toward
professional journalism changes in the society and if people start
understanding that mighty, high-level and independent mass media
outlets are needed.
Galina Davidyan graduated from the linguistic faculty of Yerevan State
University. She started her professional career in 1994 as reporter of
"Lragir Or" newspaper. Today she is general director of Novosti-Armenia
international news agency.
Galina Davidyan is the first and only female reporter who was awarded
with a jubilee medal on 15 years of the Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO) in January 2011 for prompt coverage of CSTO
initiatives. -0-
http://arka.am/en/news/interview/galina_davidyan_less_and_less_space_left_for_high_ standard_media/
Eurasian integration is becoming a major trend today. May creation
of an idea-driven common media help promote Eurasian integration
processes? FEAM-2012 participant, general director of Novosti-Armenia
international news agency Galina Davidyan answers the questions.
- What do you think, do the Eurasian project proposals keep up with
the current global political and economic tendencies, and what is
media's role in the process?
- In principle, all the processes toward integration, which help
increasing transparency and uniting around a common interest platform,
may be considered positive. In today's rapidly changing world, where
you need to run not to be stuck, it is probably one of the means to
withstand political challenges and economic crises. People, societies
and, more globally, states are built in a way that they need first to
come closer to each other, then to scatter, while moving forward. It
should be noted that both processes have lots of supporters and
opponents. And probably the time came to gather stones together,
not cast them away, and to see obvious advantages of rapprochement.
In particular, it is time to see the huge potential of the Eurasian
Economic Space with 170 million populations, open markets, free flow
of capital and goods, and spectacular opportunities for mass media.
Development of modern technologies has driven progress forward in all
fields and gave mass media outlets incredibly powerful instruments
to influence large audiences. Today media cannot imagine themselves
being outside the Internet. Social networking websites enter into
dialogue with traditional media more and more often. It is a process
that cannot be stopped. Practically all players of media market
understand this well and try to keep up with the modern trends.
- Will a common media space formed around certain ideas help promote
the European integration initiatives?
- Everything depends on what content the ideas have. Of course,
no consolidation can occur and exist on its own. There are some
universal, political and economic interests and there are ideas of
principal importance to certain societies.
For instance, today Armenia's core national doctrine includes
recognition of the 1915 genocide of Armenians and the settlement of
Karabakh conflict. Now, here is a question - are journalists from
other countries willing to study these issues, perceive them like
their own concepts and communicate them to their societies using
all the possible instruments of multimedia journalism? Of course,
a counter-question may also be asked: will be the Armenian society
concerned about resettlement of Middle Asian Koreans in CIS countries.
Therefore, I think that Eurasian integration initiatives and common
media space formed around them should be based on reasonability and
common ideas as promoting factors, including mass media.
- In general, do Armenian mass media meet modern requirements? Can
Armenian media outlets be referred to as high-quality and professional?
- Unfortunately, today we can hardly claim we have high-standard
and professional media outlets in Armenia. Moreover, we should admit
that our mass media become more and more financially dependable. In
fact, media market entities produce uncompetitive products, but still
continue functioning, with no loss suffered despite small circulation
and big return. Some Internet media produce weak yellowish content and
use copy-paste. But they still show good visit statistics, and promote
themselves in social networks zealously and no journalism principle
can stop them. They survive from sponsors' subsidies and work them
off well. Unfortunately, our media are split up into political and
economic camps and serve the interest of the respective forces.
Local media market does not make special efforts - today's consumer
is willingly using almost all what is offered. Less and less space
is left for high-standard and serious mass media outlets.
Small local media market becomes even smaller as it is divided into
interest groups and develops bypassing market competition. Besides,
doubtful information sources appear spontaneously in the cyber space.
All this creates problems for serious media.
Can this situation be reversed? Yes, if the attitude toward
professional journalism changes in the society and if people start
understanding that mighty, high-level and independent mass media
outlets are needed.
Galina Davidyan graduated from the linguistic faculty of Yerevan State
University. She started her professional career in 1994 as reporter of
"Lragir Or" newspaper. Today she is general director of Novosti-Armenia
international news agency.
Galina Davidyan is the first and only female reporter who was awarded
with a jubilee medal on 15 years of the Collective Security Treaty
Organization (CSTO) in January 2011 for prompt coverage of CSTO
initiatives. -0-