On 6 October, the management of the Georgian Public Broadcaster removed independent opposition politician and civic activist Theona Chalidze from a pre-arranged programme on Georgian Radio, and the programme was ultimately not aired at all.
Before she was refused participation in the pre-planned and agreed programme, Theona Chalidze had been attending a rally in support of prisoner Giorgi Davitadze outside the Public Broadcaster’s building. She also displayed protest banners in the broadcaster’s yard reading: “No to torture!” and “Give airtime to prisoners’ parents.”
The activist says that she was supposed to speak on the Public Broadcaster’s radio programme about problems in the penitentiary system. According to her, both the topic and her participation had been agreed with the programme host the previous day.
Chalidze recalls that when she arrived for the programme, she met the Chair of the Public Broadcaster’s Board of Trustees, Vasil Maghlaperidze, in the building’s lobby. According to her, Maghlaperidze said he had no intention of communicating with the organizers of the rallies or fulfilling demands raised through protests. “When we finished the conversation, he took a few steps and told the programme producer: ‘She is organizing a protest against you and you are inviting her on air?’” Chalidze recalls.
After this, she was told that she was blocked from appearing as a guest on the Public Broadcaster’s radio programme and was turned away.
Journalist Ia Antadze writes on social media that 350 interviews prepared as part of her signature project, “Interesting People,” have disappeared from the website of the Public Broadcaster’s First Channel (1tv.ge). No one from the channel has yet responded to Ia Antadze’s public post; therefore, it remains unknown why her materials can no longer be found.
Ia Antadze worked at the Public Broadcaster for years. Over the last eight years, she worked on this specific project. Under the framework of “Interesting People,” a portrait-style interview was published on the First Channel’s website once a week. Recently, Ia Antadze’s respondents included individuals known for their critical attitudes toward the “Georgian Dream” party, including participants in pro-European protests.
Ia Antadze’s project was shut down in July 2025, along with numerous other projects and segments.
The Director General of the Georgian Public Broadcaster has imposed another sanction on Givi Chimakadze, a studio cameraman for the Equipment and Technology Operators Group. By the director’s decree, 30% of Givi Chimakadze’s May salary will be deducted.
According to the order, the administration rejected the sick leave certificate submitted by the cameraman, which was issued by the Bochorishvili Clinic in Tbilisi on April 15, 2026. The reason cited for the rejection is that during the period specified in the certificate (April 15–20), Chimakadze was working for another employer.
“This was the job from which the Public Broadcaster was receiving a broadcast signal, again with the participation of the cameraman who was on sick leave,” writes Chimakadze’s colleague, Giga Kitia, who has also been sanctioned on multiple occasions.
This marks the second sanction for Givi Chimakadze. Earlier this year, on February 11, he was formally reprimanded for publishing a statement on social media.
The administration of the First Channel initiated a repressive policy a year ago targeting employees who are critical of the channel’s editorial stance. According to publicly circulated information, up to 30 employees have been subjected to these repressions during this period.
On February 26, 2026, at a Public Broadcaster board meeting, Lika Basilaia-Shavgulidze was verbally insulted by board member Gia Iakobashvili.
“Are you not putting the work and functioning of the Public Broadcaster at risk with this statement?” Lika Basilaia-Shavgulidze asked the board chairman of the Public Broadcaster, Vasil Maghlaperidze.
Lika Basilaya-Shavugilidze’s question concerned Vasil Maghlaperidze’s initiative; he wanted the board to express support for the television channels sanctioned by the United Kingdom.
On February 24, the United Kingdom imposed sanctions on the pro-government television companies “Imedi” and “Postv” for spreading disinformation about Ukraine following Russia’s full-scale invasion of the country.
The chairman of the Public Broadcaster Supervisory Board, Vasil Maghlaperidze, and board member Bondo Mdinarishvili publicly expressed support for the sanctioned channels.
On February 24, the Public Broadcaster reduced the February salary of Ketevan Sinitsa, Human Resources Projects Manager of the Human Resources Management Department, by 30 percent “for disseminating incorrect information in the public space that damages the employer’s reputation.” In the event of a repeat violation, she was threatened with dismissal.
According to an order issued by Tinatin Berdzenishvili, a disciplinary sanction was imposed on Ketevan Sinitsa for sharing a Facebook post by a dismissed employee of the Public Broadcaster, Kakha Melikidze, citing violations of the “Rules for the Use of Social Networks” and provisions of the Broadcasters’ Code of Conduct.
In 2025, employees critical of the channel were dismissed from the First Channel of the Georgian Public Broadcaster, including Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, journalist and anchor of the news program “Moambe,” and Nino Zautashvili, author and host of the socio-political program “Realuri Sivrtse.”
The channel’s management reportedly adopted a negative stance toward director Kakha Melikidze after he publicly accused the broadcaster’s leadership of pressuring him to frequently show officials of “Georgian Dream,” including Irakli Kobakhidze, during broadcasts of national team football matches.
The Director General of the Public Broadcaster, Tinatin Berdzenishvili, issued a reprimand to Givi Chimakadze, a studio operator in the Technical and Technology Operations Group, for disseminating a statement on social media.
Tinatin Berdzenishvili also warned Givi Chimakadze about possible dismissal from his job “in the event of a similar and/or other type of violation.”
Information about the order was disseminated via social media by “Guardians of the Public Broadcaster.” The document, signed by Tinatin Berdzenishvili, is dated February 11.
In 2025, employees critical of the channel were dismissed from the First Channel of the Georgian Public Broadcaster, including Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, a journalist and anchor of the news program “Moambe,” Nino Zautashvili, author and host of the socio-political program “Realuri Sivrtse,” and director Kakha Melikidze. The channel’s management reportedly adopted a negative stance toward Melikidze after he publicly exposed the broadcaster’s leadership. According to Melikidze, the management pressured him to frequently show officials of “Georgian Dream,” including Irakli Kobakhidze, during broadcasts of national team football matches.
On December 26, 2025, the Public Broadcaster dismissed director Kakha Melikidze from his position. Kakha Melikidze had been working at the First Channel of the Public Broadcaster since 1998.
According to information from the “Guardians of the Public Broadcaster,” the harassment of Kakha Melikidze by the broadcaster’s management began after the director publicly exposed the leadership, stating that they were pressuring him to frequently show officials from “Georgian Dream,” including Irakli Kobakhidze, during broadcasts of the national football team’s matches.
In 2025, the Public Broadcaster also dismissed the host of “Real Space,” journalist Nino Zautashvili, along with other staff members of the program, due to their critical stance. In addition, the anchor of the news program “Moambe,” Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, was dismissed. On July 30, the segment “People from History” and the program “This Weekend” were also shut down.
The First Channel of the Georgian Public Broadcaster did not renew the employment contract of Anna Metreveli, the assistant producer of the radio programs “Midday Peak” and “Evening Peak,” an employee who had criticized the channel’s editorial policy.
On October 25, Kakha Melikidze, the director of the on-air equipment and technology group at the Georgian Public Broadcaster, wrote on social media that he had received another warning from the channel and would be fined 30% of his November salary.
Melikidze noted that the reason for this was an interview he gave to the international publication Internazionale. In the interview, he spoke about the suspension of Georgia’s EU accession talks by Georgian Dream’s Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze and the developments surrounding Channel One.
“I received a second warning, and it will probably be over soon, and I will be fired from the Public Broadcaster,” Melikidze wrote on Facebook.
The Public Broadcaster first imposed disciplinary sanctions on Kakha Melikidze in April, along with other journalists critical of the channel. At that time, the channel’s management considered the employees’ actions to be “calling into question the broadcaster’s editorial independence and impartiality through statements disseminated in public space and, as a result, causing reputational damage to the employer.”
According to GPB Guardians, the Public Broadcaster’s First Channel has fired another employee of “Real Space,” Meri Shikhashvili. GPB Guardians reports that Shikhashvili was dismissed immediately upon returning from maternity leave.
The Public Broadcaster, amid pro-European demonstrations, has been dismissing employees who are critical of management, with some also facing various disciplinary sanctions.
In 2025, the Public Broadcaster imposed disciplinary measures or dismissed several employees for expressing critical positions. Among them are Nino Zautashvili, host and creator of the program “Real Space,” and Vasil Ivanov-Chikovani, host of the program “Moambe.”
On August 26, 2025, the Public Broadcaster accused editor-operator, Giga Kitia, of causing “reputational damage” to the channel due to his participation in a protest rally on Rustaveli Avenue and deducted 30 percent from his September salary.
The Public Broadcaster warned Giga Kitia that if he is found to have committed a similar or other type of violation within 12 months, he will be dismissed from his job.
The Public Broadcaster also issued a reprimand to the editor-operator in April.
The Public Broadcaster dismissed critical journalists from the channel in April 2025.
