Mdinaradze Defends Shift to State Control in Broadcasting Law Amendments
By Liza Mchedlidze
Friday, February 28, 2025
Mamuka Mdinaradze, executive secretary of the Georgian Dream party, has defended the recent amendments to the Law on Broadcasting, claiming that while the content of the regulations remains unchanged, the mechanism for their enforcement is undergoing a significant shift.
In his statement, Mdinaradze emphasized that the amendments do not alter the regulations themselves, but instead transfer the responsibility of enforcement from self-regulation to state control. "Not a single point of what was previously in the form of regulations is changing," he said. "But all this was subject to self-regulation, which was not implemented, therefore, the lack of self-regulation created stillborn norms."
Mdinaradze explained that the self-regulation system had failed, particularly within television stations. "Television stations, for example, were absolutely inert in the area of self-regulation," he added. "As it turned out, and after a thorough study, the main norms were taken from British standards, which, according to many journalists, were met with disdain."
The amendments, according to Mdinaradze, simply replace the ineffective self-regulation framework with state regulation, a shift he believes is crucial for enforcing the norms effectively. "The norm is not changing. What all journalists in Georgia have recognized is that these norms will be translated into real life, and the state will establish control over their implementation, because self-regulation is not able to do this," Mdinaradze concluded.
The proposed amendments have sparked mixed reactions in Georgia, with some expressing concerns about the potential for increased government oversight of the media. However, Mdinaradze's remarks suggest that the Georgian Dream party views the transition to state regulation as necessary to ensure that the broadcasting norms are properly implemented and adhered to.
