Regional Media – Problems and Challenges

There is a growing number of mass media sources in a democratic state. Large and relatively small media companies are created. Georgia is no exception. There has been observed the tendency to increase the number of new media in the country for a long time. In addition to the central media, it is important to hear the voice of local, regional media, which will enable us to get a deeper and more detailed understanding of current events across the country.

Although Georgia has a large share of regional media sources, most of them are struggling for survival due to lack of funds. They face many other problematic dilemmas.

Mzia Tadumadze, Associate Professor at Akaki Tsereteli State University, Head of Mass Communication Department, spoke about the role and importance of regional media, the problems and challenges they face.

How important is it to have regional media in the country, in addition to the central media?

If we take into consideration the experience of the developed countries of the West, the local media are focused not only on the region, but also on the problems of a specific community, and district; therefore, the existence of independent and strong regional media and its contribution to the overall national media product is very important, especially for a country like Georgia, where two-third of the population live in the region.

The goal of Georgian journalism is not only to cover the life of the center and political issues, the media is also interested in the problems of the population living in the regions, and closeness to this society is possible through the regional media.

Most regional media have unique respondents and direct contact with the local population. The coefficient of trust in them is great. They can get both interesting and exclusive topics. At the same time, regional media broadcasts often become a tribune for ordinary people.

How much is the number of regional media sources growing, what is the trend?

If we observe the current media processes during the last decade, specifically in the Imereti region, we will see a positive trend - an intensive attempt to create new media platforms, which is directly related to new technological changes. In addition, during the period when Kutaisi was a parliamentary city, the journalistic life was revived: the creation of new televisions, radio broadcasts, online platforms was announced. Local central media bureaus were opened near the parliament building, but this trend has slowed somewhat since the parliament returned to Tbilisi.

To what extent does regional broadcasting manage to cover events in accordance with ethical and professional norms?

Nowadays, problems of ethical journalism are often discussed among academic circles of media and not only, as there is a severe shortage of ethical media sources across the country.

Adherence to the standard of ethical coverage remains a topical issue in the regional media as well. However, as studies by international organizations prove, they adhere to ethical norms much better than the central channels. The reason is specific: for example, despite a low salary, there is less risk of financial temptation - a journalist in the region is never paid so much that it is worth damaging his professional “reputation”. Consequently, relatively less “danger” awaits moral categories here.

As for professionalism, regional media rely only on few professional staff. The reason is mainly financial. Violation of ethical standards, in this case, may also depend on staff shortages. After the outflow of professional staff, local media often rely only on inexperienced journalists, leading to self-censorship: they also find it difficult to deal with censorship and create an independent, unbiased media content.

What problems and challenges does regional broadcasting face today?

Problems and challenges are almost common among media sources across the country, although regional media are characterized by specific problems that are complex and stem from one another: financial dilemmas, reflected in the low salaries of journalists and the lack of quality media content. Most local media sources are not able to offer news or talk shows on a regular basis, as the source of funding for such programs is mainly foundations and is intended to be short-term. When international grants finish, the media, due to the lack of alternative resources, find it difficult to produce a quality product, so they are forced to supplement their main revenues with money from personal messages, running lines and ads, which is obviously not enough for full broadcasting.

There are some problems with advertising revenue as well: small local businesses are not interested in advertising, while large businesses choose central media to place ads. The economic situation in the country adds to such problematic situation. All this has a negative impact on the growth of internal media revenues. Even in the case of preparing a high-quality product in regional media, there is a problem with its sale.

As the latest research on the professions in demand in the labor market shows, the regional broadcasters of Western Georgia consider it particularly difficult to find qualified staff for media research. Consequently, when there are no studies, the problem arises, at least in terms of selling quality media products created with funding from donor organizations and turning the media into a business. Due to financial problems, the media often work with a small team. Unfortunately, one-man media sources are also known.

Indifference of civil society and less involvement in important processes should be singled out, which complicates the use of materials prepared by the media. However, local government influences and their relationship with official sources of information are in a way a hindering factor: when they are not decision-makers, the information obtained from them is, in some cases, less valuable in terms of objectivity.

At the end of the conversation, our respondent, Mzia Tadumadze, mentioned that the regional media still have to solve many problematic dilemmas. It is also noteworthy that the presence of many media sources in the state is a contributing factor to media pluralism and the democratic process. Therefore, it is important to encourage regional media in order to receive full and detailed information on current events across the country.

Soso Gazdeliani