“Today, the media in both Armenia and Azerbaijan, and also among those niche market publications based abroad that report on the region, amplify the negative and nearly always ignore any positive developments or glimmers of hope,” writes Onnik James Krikorian in this op-ed for commonspace.eu. “The masses in both countries have already turned off from such coverage. And trust in the media is now at an all-time low, especially given the extent of inaccurate reporting during the 2020 Karabakh war.”
“Without more accurate and unbiased information […] free of negative rhetoric and stereotypes, Armenians and Azerbaijanis will continue to see themselves as enemies without any common ground,” a 2008 report from the Caucasus Research Resource Centres (CRRC) read.
“Some argue that those with a strong interest in politics and access to various sources of information are subject to ‘biased processing,’” the CRRC report continued, explaining that people tend to filter information based on already existing views even if they otherwise say they would prefer a more unbiased media.
Regrettably, even after fifteen years, the situation remains largely unchanged. Despite a more diverse information space that includes a plethora of niche outlets funded by international donors, many have now proven themselves more partisan and nationalist than the traditional media to which they were meant to provide an alternative. There are some exceptions, of course, but these are few and far between in the scheme of things and anyway reach a small audience.
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The full article can be read here.
