ARMENIA TV ARGUES ITS CASE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 YEREVAN 001700

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR EUR/PPD, EUR/CARC, EUR/ACE

E.O. 12958; N/A
TAGS: PGOV PHUM EAID KPAO KDEM AM
SUBJECT: ARMENIA TV ARGUES ITS CASE

Ref: Yerevan 1075

YEREVAN 00001700 001.2 OF 002


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SUMMARY
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(U) Sensitive But Unclassified. Please protect accordingly.


1. (SBU) MCC Country Director and PAO met with Armenia TV President
Bagrat Sargsian and toured the company's facilities. Sargsian
affirmed his belief in the TV channel's independence and promised to
provide opposition candidates a platform to air their views in the
lead-up to the May parliamentary elections. He also offered to give
extensive coverage to MCA Armenia's projects. End Summary.

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FREE TO BROADCAST WHAT THEY "CHOOSE"
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2. (SBU) According to Sargsian, Armenia TV is a 50/50 joint venture
between the Cafesjian family in the U.S. and the Sargsian family in
Armenia. The station was founded shortly after Armenia's
independence by Sargsian's father, a prominent television
personality in Armenia during the Soviet Union. Since 2001, when
the Cafesjian family invested in the company, and it became CS
Media, the operation has grown to include other television and radio
stations. CS Media also broadcasts CNN International in Armenia.
It has its own satellite distribution capability so programming can
reach the Armenian diaspora in the U.S. and elsewhere. Armenia TV
also broadcasts Voice of America news. Sargsain said that annual
gross revenue for the group was running $7 million a month, of which
$4.5 million came from Armenia TV which he estimated to account for
about half the advertising market. Sargsian expects the revenues to
grow by as much as 50% annually. (Note: Although the revenues are
not too far off from other estimates we have seen, they would put
Armenia TV at less than 15% of the market, behind Shant TV and
H1-Public TV.)


3. (SBU) Sargsian insisted that Armenia TV was fully independent
and complained that reports on the media situation in Armenia
consistently fail to acknowledge that. He said the station strives
to introduce Western standards of journalism and that reporters are
never told how to report the news. Sargsian maintained that the
Armenian government has no influence on the TV's programming or on
the news they choose to report. He noted, however, that Armenia TV
does not "choose" to criticize government figures and risk losing
its broadcast frequency like A1+ TV did in 2002. (See reftel for
more information on self-censorship). He recounted how the station
had had problems once when an (unnamed) minister took offense over a
critical report and had their signal blocked for a few days until
they were able to smooth things over. He noted that CS Media has
since taken the step of installing its own broadcasting network to
make it harder for them to be shut down on somebody's whim.

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EN GARDE
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4. (SBU) Armenia TV is already preparing for the parliamentary
elections scheduled for next May. Key to their programming,
according to Sargsian, would be a debate show entitled "Duel"
featuring candidates from various parties in a one-on-one format. A
new studio is being built to seat up to 300 people for the show and
Sargsian indicated that candidates who refused to appear would be
named (and shamed) on the air. In addition to "Duel," the station
would have an elections-centered talk show and offer a wide array of
politicians and parties a platform to air their positions on the
issues.

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TELLING THE MCA STORY
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5. (SBU) Sargsian expressed his eagerness to give extensive
coverage to the activities of MCA Armenia. He suggested filming a
number of segments to show the Armenian public the specific benefits
that would accrue to the average person from completion of the
program. He hoped that by doing so, the GOAM would feel pressured
to strive harder to meet the MCA criteria and not risk having the
program cancelled. Sargsian even offered to do a weekly "MCA
Update" on the news that would highlight progress (and setbacks) in
the program. (NOTE: The Cafesjian family has an ownership interest
in the Armenian bank selected by MCC to handle MCA financial
transactions here, so there is an understandable business angle to
Armenia TV's enthusiasm. END NOTE)

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COMMENT
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YEREVAN 00001700 002.2 OF 002




6. (SBU) Armenia TV is the private station with the best geographic
coverage in the country and, with its satellite capability, is even
able to reach Armenians working abroad in Russia and the U.S. who
are eligible to vote in the elections. The station is profitable
and its owners have deep pockets. Its facilities are first class.
The station has the potential to give a big boost to the ability of
all candidates to get their message across to the Armenian
electorate. Recent actions against independent networks in
neighboring Azerbaijan may serve as a cautionary tale as well,
however, actions speak louder than words, and we will be watching
closely the kind of coverage that Armenia TV provides in the run up
to the May elections.
Godfrey