The story of the publication of the audio recordings of phone conversations the Union of Informed Citizens (UIC) had with the principals of 84 primary schools and 30 kindergarten schools spread like wildfire on social media and became one of the main topics of discussion on news websites.

The day after this news went public, the print media provided adequate space to the news.

The TV stations, however, if they covered the story at all, did so only on the days following.

The audio recordings were made public on March 24. We monitored the airwaves of five TV stations: Yerkir Media, Kentron, Armenia TV, Shant TV, and the First Channel of the Public TV of Armenia (H1).

Yerkir Media mentioned the audio recordings on the following day, March 25. The story was discussed in the Yerkirn Aysor (The Country Today) news program as an already well-known story, which, however, the TV station hadn’t yet mentioned. “RA Minister of Education and Science Levon Mkrtchyan, who is currently on vacation, has also addressed the Union of Informed Citizens’ recordings and the story that has raised such an uproar,” reads the Yerkirn Aysor host, after which the minister’s comments are cited. 

If TV viewers get information only from this TV station’s news program, they can’t know what happened, what audio recordings the broadcaster is talking about, and why they had attracted such media attention. 

Yerkir Media TV’s  Director of Public and Political Programs Gegham Manukyan says: “Generally, the newsfeed is so full and saturated that it’s hard to broadcast everything. The news was disseminated in the evening. I had to check it against the legislation. Ultimately, we’re talking about confidential recordings being made public. Since the following morning, we’ve been covering it every day. At the same time, Yerkir Media is a multi[-platform] TV company. Also working in parallel is the YerkirMedia.am website, where the news was periodically updated.”

The story of the school principals’ audio recordings was delivered practically the same way by the news programs of Kentron and Shant TV: a well-known story which these TV stations had mentioned for the first time — without providing details on what happened. 

During the 6 p.m. broadcast on March 25 of Shant TV’s Horizon news program, in a reportage about testing the new devices at polling stations, there’s a mention of the audio recordings. The journalists working on the ground asked Central Elections Commission Chair Tigran Mukuchyan and Minister–Chief of Staff Davit Harutyunyan for their comments on the story. 

“Taking this opportunity, journalists inquired how state bodies are treating the accusations, which recently became the cause of heated discussions, that 114 educational institutions work in favor of the Republican Party of Armenia,” the journalist’s voice is heard in the reportage, after which Davit Harutyunyan’s remarks are presented.

Kentron TV’s Epikentron (Epicenter) news program likewise shared the news with its viewers the next day. Not so much the story itself, but the comments of the offices of the Armenian Prosecutor General and the Human Rights Defender became the reason for the mention.

Kentron’s Director of News Programs Baghdasar Mheryan explains why they didn’t cover the sensational recordings on March 24. “Imagine that an NGO spreads any information that is not verified. Does the TV station have to disseminate it at once? We covered the story when the Prosecutor General verified it and made a statement regarding it. I believe this is normal,” says Mheryan.

Two of the five TV stations we monitored, Armenia TV and H1, did not report the story of the publication of the audio recordings or the two days following it at all.

Public TV’s head of the Department of Political and News Programs Harutyun Harutyunyan explains that the First Channel didn’t report the news for several reasons. First of all, they at Public TV approach such topics very carefully, so that coverage isn’t viewed by any political group as bias, a violation of ethical norms, or a smear campaign. 

Harutyunyan cites as an example the news the media reported during the election campaign of stabbing or brawls between candidates, which were later disproved.

“If we had worked according to this principle, we wouldn’t have enough airtime later to publish all those retractions. And is it, in fact, right to accept anything made public when your own journalist hasn’t been on the scene and you’re not sure what prompted it?” asks Harutyunyan.

As for the 114 school principals’ audio recordings, since Armenia’s Prosecutor General has issued a statement that only one of the recordings contains prima facie evidence of a crime, Public TV is waiting for the results of the investigation. Only after that will H1’s Orakarg (Agenda) news program report on the story. 

“I understand the underlying issue, but in terms of dissemination, television is not a website endowed with unlimited possibilities. One can argue or accuse us of not covering this topic, but in the limited minutes allotted to us we decide what to mention and to what extent. If Public TV was a news website, certainly this topic would also have its place in one or several published stories. But since we don’t fit within the 30 minutes allocated to us and we’re forced often to provide equal time to all the political parties and alliances, we’re forced to bypass many news events,” Harutyunyan concludes.

Gagik Aghbalyan