Georgian Dream again hints at regulating online media

Georgian Dream MPs have again hinted at the possible regulation of online media funding. This latest discussion occurred after the parliament passed amendments to the broadcasting law — which would prohibit the funding of TV broadcasters by ‘foreign powers’ and regulate their coverage ‘standards’ — in the second reading.

The amendments to the broadcasting Law were initiated in parliament in February. According to the text’s original version, both the funding and ‘standards’ provisions were meant to apply exclusively to TV channels.

However, during the discussions in both the first and second reading of the draft legislation, several statements were made regarding the potential expansion of the law to include online media.

On 3 March, Archil Gorduladze, chair of the parliament’s Legal Committee, stated that although the amendments to the broadcasting law would not affect online and print media, ‘there is an additional challenge with the development of technologies’, emphasising that work in this direction could continue.

The following day, Sozar Subari, an MP from the ruling party’s ally People’s Power, proposed extending the regulation of ‘standards’ to ‘social networks’ as well. This was followed on 17 March by a statement from Gorduladze, suggesting that the draft legislation be amended to regulate online media coverage.

Later that same evening, Georgian Dream adjusted its rhetoric, stating that the standards provision would not apply to online media in general but only to websites and social media pages operated by TV channels.

Nevertheless, during the parliamentary session on 19 March, the issue of potential online media regulation resurfaced — this time in relation to funding.

"[With these legislative amendments], broadcasters will no longer have the opportunity to be funded by a foreign power, from abroad […] Following the same logic, certain powers could also fund so-called online media in our country from abroad, including for their subversive activities’, Gorduladze said.

‘Shouldn’t there be a similar regulation here as well, so that what we commonly refer to as online media would also be subject to the same restrictions?’, he asked during the parliamentary debate.

Gorduladze then suggested that ‘there could be a provision regarding simplified forms of accreditation or registration, while also introducing different forms of accountability for media outlets that avoid transparency regarding their funding or, at the same time, receive income from abroad’.

He did not specify what he meant by ‘accreditation and registration’, or how this relates to the idea of funding restrictions.

Another MP from the ruling party, Rati Ionatamishvili, supported his colleague’s statement, but added that ‘legislative regulation of these issues requires amendments to various laws, meaning they need to be developed as a package. Therefore, integrating this matter into the [broadcasting law] today would be difficult for us’.

‘But I express my full readiness to work on regulating this issue in the legislative process’, he said, adding that ‘as a source of information and a tool for influencing public opinion, internet media are used even more actively today than broadcasting’.

The discussion was summarised by Georgian Dream’s parliamentary leader, Mamuka Mdinaradze, who noted that this initiative comes with challenges, including the concern that it may be perceived by some as a ‘restriction on freedom of speech’ by the ruling party.

The changes to the broadcasting law are just one of many legislative changes being quickly pushed through by Georgian Dream that threaten to undermine democracy in the country.

The list also includes amendments that would criminalise treason, abolition of the mention of gender in Georgia’s legislation, and the exclusion of civil society organisations from all official decision-making processes.

Additionally, these amendments are not the first attempt of the ruling party to target the independent media, alongside civil society organisations.

The current controversial foreign agent law labels any civil society or media organisation that receives at least 20% of its funding from abroad ‘organisations carrying out the interests of a foreign power’.

However, this year, Georgian Dream and its allies concluded that the current law was insufficient and sought to replace it with a word-by-word copy of the US Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) legislation.

Several civil society and media representatives have criticised the new bills. In particular, they highlighted that the amendments to the broadcasting law, if passed, would pose a threat to media freedom. In addition, they noted that the US FARA is not used to target civil society and the media by US authorities.

Georgian Dream has repeatedly claimed that the new bills are necessary to fight the ‘influence of external powers’.

In barrage of legislation, Georgian Dream approves new foreign agent law in its first reading

The ruling party claims that the new law is a word-for-word translation of America’s Foreign Agents Registration Act.

OC MediaYousef Bardouka