The Communications Commission (ComCom) has fined TV Pirveli for the second time for violating provisions of the Law on Broadcasting related to content regulation. The broadcaster was fined GEL 5,000.
The case was considered under amendments to the Law on Broadcasting adopted by Georgian Dream, which significantly tightened content-regulation requirements for broadcasters. Among other provisions, the amendments introduced restrictions on the expression of editorial positions in news and socio-political programs, new rules governing the right of reply, and standards related to covert recording.
The Commission’s monitoring covered news broadcasts aired on July 27–28. According to ComCom, the broadcasts contained instances in which news was presented through personal attitudes or opinions and factual information was not reported with sufficient accuracy. The Commission identified expressions such as “organized a big hunt,” “scroll-screen agency,” “Chechen-type squad,” “hunting activists,” and “the police were fooled by their nerves” as problematic.
ComCom specifically found a violation in the report “People Have Begun to Be Detained,” aired during TV Pirveli’s 20:00 news broadcast on July 27. According to the Commission, the journalist’s interpretation of a conversation between police officers failed to meet the required standard of factual accuracy.
Currently, TV Pirveli and Formula have each received two fines under the content-regulation provisions. If ComCom finds another violation by TV Pirveli, it will have the authority to consider suspending the broadcaster’s authorization or imposing a higher fine of no less than GEL 10,000 and no more than 3% of the company’s annual revenue.
According to the Georgian Charter of Journalistic Ethics, ComCom continues to exert pressure on television broadcasters over the use of terminology deemed unacceptable by Georgian Dream. The Charter argues that, following the amendments to the Law on Broadcasting adopted in March 2025, the Commission has increasingly used proactive media monitoring as an instrument of pressure on editorial policy, undermining broadcasters’ ability to maintain independent editorial decision-making.
