The Media Initiatives Center Jury summed up the results of the street-art sketches contest in June 2016, and the winners of the categories “Media’s Role in Society,” “Freedom of Speech,” and “I am the Media” are Artak Gevorgyan, Ani Tadevosyan and Eliza Baghdiyan.

Media.am decided to publish the interesting works of one of the contest’s participants, Arpi Balyan, and requested that she convey her reflections on her own sketches and on the role of the media.

One of my friends in the month of June or May sent me information via Facebook, announcing the Media Initiatives Center’s contest, the goal of which was to increase the role of media in society. Youth with skills to design and create graffiti were invited to submit their sketches, with the themes of “Media’s Role in Society,” “Freedom of Speech,” and “I am the Media.”

I don’t know why, the first slogans that arose in my mind were in English:

“I must rule the media,” “I rule the media,” “Cut the hands of manipulation,” “I click right news,” “Find a way to adequate news,” “Adequate news,” “No media manipulations,” “True news,” etc.

Good, but why English? I asked myself. I try to translate, and later write the Armenian words that come to mind: news, media, poster, real, adequate, accurate, credible, reality, precise information.

Later, phrases: “A healthy reality is a product of a correctly chosen media,” “Adequate media is the key to a healthy reality.”

They don’t work. I remember a phrase from some discussion:

“The words we use do not directly express that which we are trying to explain,” “We use the word “like”, to complicate the message, so that what is said will reach somewhere.”

This calms the mind, I move on to the sketches.

Maybe I will use the image of Femida, but instead of a sword I will draw a microphone. If Fedima is the goddess of justice, then news broadcast from the microphone in this case will be treated as something just, powerful.

The time has come, to pass over the sketches with a program. Again a difficulty: The only program which I can use to prepare the sketches is PicsArt. But the Armenian font here is limited. (It is an unusual thing, an Armenian production program, of which the Armenian font is limited).

A few days later one of my friends suggests preparing scripts for products designed by Armenian programmers. A rainfall of questions: How to write a script that would be devoid of sexism, of various types of discrimination, but at the same make the product’s appeal possible?

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What problem does the media solve? How is it possible to present reality as it is, to not change, exaggerate, add, subtract? Our reality is built on that media, our injustices are based on that information, we are the media transmitters and therefore, how can we possibly be adequate to the news?

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“Have any of your family members from 2012 emigrated from the Republic of Armenia?” Until the participant of the survey answers, in my mind I ask myself a question: emigrate? Is that the right word?

“Will the high-quality path reduce the transportation vehicle’s damage?” I continue my survey. “High-quality? Isn’t that word unnecessary? Isn’t it confusing? Maybe it has a tendency to persuade?”

“Terrorists have seized the Erebuni police department,” I read in the media. What purpose does this word have? It is clearer than clear.

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Words can convince or confuse a person, heal them, trap or free them from a trap. How to act? You must remain clever, tactful towards what you see and hear.

The sketches have been sent, preparing stencils will be easy.

Arpi Balyan

The views expressed in the column are those of the author's and do not necessarily reflect the views of Media.am.