On April 24, TV Imedi a broadcaster sanctioned by the United Kingdom for spreading Russian disinformation published a social media post accusing the critical news outlet TV Pirveli of manipulation. The post concerns a report by TV Pirveli claiming that 60% of those granted Georgian citizenship in 2025 were Russian citizens.
TV Imedi writes that “beyond the statistical figure intended to mislead the public, the opposition media says nothing about the fact that restoration, retention, or the granting of citizenship by way of exception can be requested by former Georgian citizens or citizens who have either already lost or have not yet lost their Georgian citizenship after acquiring the citizenship of another country.”
The post features a photo of Nodar Meladze, the head of TV Pirveli’s news service, with the word “Manipulation” stamped across it in red. TV Imedi frequently publishes posts targeting the critical broadcaster TV Pirveli and its news director, Nodar Meladze.
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 pro-government outlet “Postv” produced a report against the investigative journalists’ association “iFact.”
The “Postv” report focused on an episode from a video series produced by “iFact” about the property of Minister of Internal Affairs Gela Geladze.
The “iFact” video included a list of Gela Geladze’s declared assets.
“Gela Geladze’s narrated property declaration provided a good basis for opposition media hysteria and another attempt to discredit the government,” the “Postv” report stated.
The report’s author also claimed that the “iFact” video “led to misperceptions, manipulations, and misleading the public,” and accused “iFact” itself of “disinformation” and “speculation.”
“Postv” frequently publishes materials critical of independent media, which is continuously documented by CMIS.
On February 21, 2026, during a debate broadcast on the pro-government TV company “Imedi,” Shalva Papuashvili made a manipulative statement regarding the sentence of Mzia Amaghlobeli. He compared the journalist’s verdict to the sentence of a person convicted for slapping French President Emmanuel Macron.
“In France, a person attacked Macron do you know how much he was sentenced to? 18 months,” Shalva Papuashvili stated.
However, according to information published by “Netgazeti,” in reality the French man who slapped the president spent only 4 months in prison and the remaining term was suspended, whereas Mzia Amaghlobeli was sentenced to two years in prison. The journalist has already been in prison for more than one year.
On February 12, POST TV Analitika disseminated visual material about journalist Nanuka Zhorzholiani via social media, aimed at damaging her professional reputation and discrediting her. The content and format of the material contain degrading messages that go beyond the standards of expression permissible within the bounds of public interest and indicate an attempt to discredit the journalist.
A week earlier, an attempt to discredit Nanuka Zhorzholiani was also made by Georgian Dream MP Tea Tsulukiani, who shared an AI-generated image along with a text written in offensive language, falsely depicting her as being photographed with the American financier Epstein, who was convicted of pedophilia.
On January 28, a post was published on the Facebook page of the pro–“Georgian Dream” TV company Imedi, showing a photo that included TV Pirveli journalist and producer Nodar Meladze alongside the Executive Director of Transparency International Georgia. Imedi accused TV Pirveli of spreading false propaganda and called it a “propaganda tool.”
Like POSTV, Imedi is actively involved in promoting narratives created by Georgian Dream to discredit independent media, both on television broadcasts and on social media accounts.
The Chair of Parliament from “Georgian Dream,” Shalva Papuashvili, has once again engaged in discrediting independent online media, first on the air of TV company “Imedi,” and later on his personal social media page.
On Imedi’s broadcast, Papuashvili referred to the publication “Publika” as a “so-called media outlet that is in reality an instrument of propaganda.”
Shalva Papuashvili attempted to discredit independent media in the context of organizations being registered abroad.
Along with “Publika,” he mentioned other media outlets in the same context, specifically on.ge and “Tabula.”
Quotes discrediting “Publika” by the Chair of Parliament from “Georgian Dream” were published as separate Facebook cards, including by TV company “Imedi.” Subsequently, the broadcaster dedicated separate reports to this topic in the first block of various news programs.
The same narrative was once again spread by Shalva Papuashvili via his own social media, where this time the names of “Publika” editors Lika Zakashvili and Zurab Vardiashvili were mentioned on the organization’s registration document.
High-ranking officials of “Georgian Dream” are actively attempting to discredit independent media.
A Member of Parliament from “Georgian Dream,” Nino Tsilosani, calls the fact-checking organization “Myth Detector” “trolls.”
“So, ‘Myth Detector,’ that is, trolls exposed by a troll?! So should we believe the Myth Detector troll?! I am telling you that [Myth Detector] is a troll; the goals of this organization are unknown to everyone. Isn’t it your television’s goal to label someone a troll! To call a person a troll who says the truth about a BBC article and a documentary film, that it was a lie—so you call a troll a person who was laughing that for you it was important that a parrot lost its feathers,” Nino Tsilosani stated.
Representatives of “Georgian Dream” are systematically engaged in the public discreditation of independent media, journalists, and representatives of civil society, with the aim of damaging their reputation in the eyes of the public.
Tbilisi City Council member Konstantine Zarnadze of “Georgian Dream” accuses independent media outlets of “psychological terror, sowing disorder and fear.”
“It is impossible to ignore the psychological terror that opposition media carry out on a daily basis… This is no longer journalism; this is manipulation of people’s psyche. Their goal is to create a constant sense of tension, to sow disorder and fear in society, and to instill complete hopelessness about the future,” the council member said in response to reports by critical media outlets about food prices.
Representatives of “Georgian Dream” systematically engage in the public discrediting of independent media and journalists, with the aim of undermining them in the eyes of the public.
On January 20, Pro-Government TV”Imedi” published a clip on its social media page taken from a monologue by TV Pirveli journalist Vika Bukia, with the caption: “The grammatical ‘education’ of a propagandist.”
Vika Bukia is a journalist known for her critical stance toward “Georgian Dream.” It is for this reason that the pro-government TV station “Imedi” singled out an excerpt from the journalist’s monologue and, for the purpose of discrediting her, labeled her a “propagandist.”
