Azatutyun TV’s October 7 issue referred to the Dashnaks’ protest demanding the resignation of Minister Arayik Harutyunyan. The report was entirely based on Arayik Harutyunyan’s speech. During a briefing which followed the government meeting, Azatutyun’s reporter asked Arayik Harutyunyan whether he thinks the Armenian Revolutionary Federation (Dashnaktsutyun) representatives and its heads are somehow related to the former authorities and try to create artificial problems for the government. Arayik Harutyunyan responded: “Sure. The reason why they started to raise criticism especially after the reforms in the field of education, is that they have failed to coordinate this field many times. I am going to fill those boxes they brought with a few dozen criminal cases related to this area and send them back.” In addition, Arayik Harutyunyan stated that Dashnaktsutyun misbehaves. After this statement, the reporter did not seek comment from any ARF representative.
“Media Advocate” initiative has periodically noticed that “Azatutyun” reporters present bilateral reports. We once again urge them to present reports based on journalistic ethics, and not on their own preferences.
