From October 12 -13, 2020, “Media Advocate” initiative monitored the publications of 5 leading Russian media outlets to find out how the Russian media covered the actions unleashed by Azerbaijan. The following media outlets were monitored: “Lenta ru”, “Gazeta ru”, “Ria Novosti”, “Regnum”, and “TASS”.
“Lenta.ru” published 18 articles, 2 of which were the publications of the Azerbaijani side, 10 of the Armenian side, 6 were calls, statements of different countries and structures, as well as comments of state officials and experts. 3 out of 6 materials are neutral, 2 are pro-Armenian, 1 is pro-Azerbaijani.
“Gazeta ru” published 37 articles, 7 of which were the publications of the Azerbaijani side, 18 of the Armenian side, 12 were calls, statements of different countries and structures, as well as comments of state officials and experts. 10 out of 12 materials are neutral, none is pro-Armenian, 2 is pro-Azerbaijani.
“Ria Novosti” published 69 articles, 14 of which were the publications of the Azerbaijani side, 43 of the Armenian side, 12 were calls, statements of different countries and structures, as well as comments of state officials and experts. 9 out of 12 materials are neutral, 2 are pro-Armenian, 1 is pro-Azerbaijani.
“TASS” published 55 articles, 18 of which were the publications of the Azerbaijani side, 14 of the Armenian side, 22 were calls, statements of different countries and structures, as well as comments of state officials and experts. 21 out of 22 materials are neutral, none is pro-Armenian, 1 is pro-Azerbaijani.
“Regnum” published 57 articles, 15 of which were the publications of the Azerbaijani side, 17 of the Armenian side, 25 were calls, statements of different countries and structures, as well as comments of state officials and experts. 20 out of 25 materials are neutral, 3 are pro-Armenian, 2 is pro-Azerbaijani.
The Russian media covered the criminal case initiated by Azerbaijani authorities against Russian journalist Semyon Pegov, as well as Pegov’s reaction to it. One of the news outlets gathered the comments of Social network users regarding this topic. One of the users noted that Armenia is open to all journalists, while Azerbaijan bans journalists from entering for so-called security reasons, but in reality, they simply have something to hide. Users also discussed the conversation between Russian Defense Minister Shoigu and Turkish Defense Minister Akar over the Karabakh conflict. Users opposed Turkey’s participation in the conflict, noting that Turkey should “moderate its appetite” and “stop dreaming about the Ottoman Empire”. One of the Russian users noted: “Let Turkey first return to the Armenians the lands that it has illegally appropriated, as well as pay compensation for the genocide, only then it may talk about the “occupied” Azerbaijani lands.”
The Russian media publishes various analytical materials on the Artsakh conflict. The article by Regnum news agency titled as “Aliyev and Erdogan make Putin look for new solutions” notes that Aliyev behaves in a contradictory manner, and conditions it by Erdogan’s intervention and the “home assignments” he has given to Azerbaijan. The author of the article sums up the article with the following conclusion: “The presidents of Azerbaijan and Turkey are playing a risky game aimed at broad geopolitical realignments, which are directly related to Moscow’s interests. The time is coming for Russia to make new decisions as well.”
