20-07-2025
Tbilisi
The pro-government television channel “Imedi” continues to discredit independent journalists and media outlets

The television channel “Imedi,” controlled by the Georgian Dream party, criticized Al Jazeera’s report on Georgia during its weekly talk show Imedi Week and referred to independent and critical Georgian media and journalists as politically biased.

The report covered current events in Georgia and included respondents such as former Public Broadcaster journalist Nino Zautashvili and Netgazeti editor Nestan Tsetsladze. The author of the Imedi segment described them as “subjective journalists from politically biased online media funded by foreign organizations.”

“In the report, Al Jazeera’s journalist and their politically engaged respondents try to portray the term ‘deep state’ as if it was coined by Imedi,” says an Imedi journalist in one segment, while footage shows Netgazeti editor Nestan Tsetsladze and journalist Nino Zautashvili [timecode: 05:46–05:56].

The Imedi Week segment also mentioned Batumelebi/Netgazeti media manager Mzia Amaglobeli, who is in prison, casting doubt on her innocence.

“I advise Ms. Amaglobeli to file a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg if she believes she is imprisoned for practicing journalism. Her case is being expedited due to her imprisonment. A lot of money is being spent on her lawyers, so she should kindly go ahead and file in Strasbourg, though she does not,” says Rukhadze on Al Jazeera [timecode: 05:04–05:46]. Imedi repeats this segment in its report without providing the context of Amaglobeli’s imprisonment, omitting details or showing the respondent who could discuss the legality of her detention.

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20-07-2025
3
Discrediting | Verbal attack
Pro-government/Propaganda television station “Imedi”
Persecution for expressing critical position
Tbilisi