Hello there! My name is Tamara, and I’m usually the one managing OC Media’s social media accounts. In my free time, I also track social and political ads on Meta platforms. And after spending enough time checking what ads are running in Georgia, it has become worryingly obvious how cheap, easy, and effective propaganda is these days.

PosTV, the biggest political and social ad spender in the Georgian media, is a pro-government channel with a strong anti-woke stance. In the past 90 days alone, PosTV has spent around $52,500 on political and social advertising, securing massive reach across Georgia’s regions. Co-owned by an MP from Georgian Dream’s satellite party, PosTV frequently runs smear campaigns against anti-government protesters, often framing them as ‘radicals’ linked to the opposition. Some of its video snippets carry titles like: ‘Radicals [protestors] against Georgia’s success’ and ‘Satanic rituals at demonstrations — what the abandoned protest has become’. In particular, PosTV has recently shifted focus to aligning Donald Trump and Elon Musk’s views on the ‘deep state’ with Georgian Dream’s own rhetoric — even suggesting that Georgian Dream was ahead of Trump.

One of the most recent examples currently running as an active ad on their social media is a four-minute video comparison between Georgian and Turkish protests, titled: ‘The deep state’s similar signature’. The video is full of comparisons of how protesters in both places show middle fingers to police, build barricades, and even hug each other in front of the police. By creating these comparisons, PosTV is insinuating that these protests are being created externally, that someone has trained these protesters.

Yet, in one of the edits, from 1:40 to 2:12, you see Turkish protesters jumping and singing ‘jump, jump, the one who does not jump is [Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan]’, while in the Georgian clip, protesters are seen drumming and chanting: ‘unjust court, fear the power of the people’. While there is absolutely no link between these chants, the video’s creators rely on their audience not speaking Turkish and sometimes don’t even attempt to find footage that might actually match, thereby negating their point. This video says a lot about what they think of their audience.

As of 28 March, PosTV has spent $200–$300 on this ad, reaching 300,000–350,000 people.

Similarly, of all Georgian politicians, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze is currently the top spender on social and political ads, having spent $40,000 on ads in the past 90 days. Last week, he spent $300–$400 to boost a video titled ‘A senior official from one of two funds banned by Trump was asking me to drag Georgia into war’. Another $300–$400 went to a 22-second clip, with him saying: ‘This country is governed by a sovereign government legitimised by the people’. Both ads reached around 300,000–350,000 people. Kobkahidze’s recent ads have also promoted foreign visits, religious holidays, and sports victories.

The third and fourth biggest ad spenders in Georgia on social and political content were the pages of Georgian Dream and the Georgian government. While political figures and state bodies obviously dominate political ad spending around the world, Kobakhidze’s Georgian Dream and the government have almost tripled their budgets since January–March 2024. Their ads mainly promote politician quotes, sports, religion, and government projects. In the past 90 days, the Georgian Dream page spent more than $36,000, while the Georgian government page spent more than $23,000.

In contrast, there are only three opposition politicians ranked among the top 15 political ad spenders in Georgia. Their spending primarily goes toward promoting their support for the protests and boosting TV interviews. Over the last 90 days, their combined spending was around $20,000 — half of what Kobakhidze alone has spent.

A notable newcomer, a social media page Protest 24, has spent around $11,000 in the last 90 days on protest-related promotions. Their ads highlight upcoming demonstrations and amplify campaigns raising awareness about activists facing criminal charges.

Meanwhile, iFact, a donor funded online media outlet, has spent around $3,000 in the last 90 days on promoting its content. iFact’s recent coverage includes stories like: ‘Mayor’s representatives are not helping to solve problems in Imereti’ and ‘Four years after a $2 million pledge, this school is still not rehabilitated’.

Another media outlet critical of the government, Tabula, has spent around $2,500 on social and political ads in the last 90 days. While no pro-government media has promoted or even reported on the Signal chat scandal in the US, Tabula spent $10–$20 promoting a card about it, a luxury for most of the smaller media outlets in Georgia. On the other hand, RFE/RL, the largest player in Georgian online media landscape, does not pay to promote its content yet still manages to reach an audience comparable to PosTV.

Here at OC Media, we’ve spent just $47 on Facebook and Instagram promotions in the past 90 days — all of it was directed towards promoting our membership programme, which is not categorised as social or political advertising. If you are not yet a member, please consider subscribing, because with the rise of far-right and authoritarianism globally, those with the money to dominate the media space risk drowning out the rest.

So, is this propaganda or a battle of narratives on social media? That’s for you to decide. But one thing is clear, whoever has gold, plays the tune — and in Georgia, while pro-government voices are constantly amplified through paid advertising, government critics are increasingly struggling to afford further visibility outside of their organic reach.

The numbers in this newsletter are based on Meta ads library, a searchable digital database containing information about ads that are currently running across Meta platforms. You can also check who is the top political and social ad spender in your country. Trust me, it’s fun.

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