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Netgazeti.ge
ნეტგაზეთი
TypeNews Media
Owner(s)Gazeti Batumelebi LLC[1]
Founder(s)Mzia Amaglobeli, Eter Turadze
Editor-in-chiefEter Turadze[2]
General managerMzia Amaglobeli
Founded2010; 15 years ago (2010)[3]
LanguageGeorgian, Russian[4]
HeadquartersTbilisi, Georgia
Sister newspapersBatumelebi[1]
Websitenetgazeti.ge
ru.netgazeti.ge (Russian)

Netgazeti is an independent Georgian online media outlet established in 2010 by journalists Mzia Amaghlobeli and Eter Turadze [ka], who had previously founded the newspaper Batumelebi in 2001. The establishment of Netgazeti was intended to extend its journalistic coverage beyond Batumi and Adjara, reaching a national audience. The outlet focuses on politics, human rights, social issues, and investigative journalism.[5]

Overview

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Netgazeti has been recognized for its critical reporting and in-depth analysis of government policies and regional developments. In 2015, the outlet received the European Press Prize. This award is given to those publications that, according to the German Zeit-Stiftung and the Norwegian Foundation for Freedom of Expression, "are not afraid of censorship and repression."[6][7]

Russian-language version

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In 2020, after a two-month testing phase, Netgazeti officially launched its Russian-language version. A significant portion of the content published by the websites of LLC Gazeti Batumelebi, Batumelebi and Netgazeti, became available in Russian, accessed from the homepage.

According to Batumelebi's director, Mzia Amaghlobeli, the initiative aims to improve access to information for Georgia's non-Georgian-speaking citizens, including ethnic minorities, residents of conflict regions, and the broader South Caucasus. She also expressed hope that additional language versions would be introduced in the future.[4]

Censorship and Discrimination

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Over the years, Netgazeti, alongside Newspaper Batumelebi has faced discrimination, political pressure, intimidation, and harassment from government-affiliated individuals and groups, both during the rule of the United National Movement and the Georgian Dream.[8][9][10][11]

The media outlet angered Russian authorities, receiving the status of "an organization disseminating anti-Russian propaganda" and was banned in Russia. In 2022, Russia's communications regulator Roskomnadzor blocked the Russian-language versions of Netgazeti and Batumelebi.[12][13]

2025 Events

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See also: Mzia Amaglobeli, 2024–2025 Georgian protests, and 2024–2025 Georgian constitutional crisis

On 12 January 2025, one of the founders and a director of Batumelebi and Netgazeti, Mzia Amaghlobeli, was arrested on charges of "assaulting" Batumi head of police, Irakli Dgebuadze, during a protest in Batumi. This arrest has been widely perceived as part of a broader crackdown on independent media in Georgia. In response, embassies of 14 member countries of the Media Freedom Coalition issued a joint statement demanding her immediate release, expressing concern over the intimidation of journalists in Georgia.[14][15] As of 4 February 2025, Amaglobeli has been on a hunger strike since her arrest. According to her, this is a protest against injustice.[16][17] According to the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association, Mzia Amaghlobeli's life is in danger as of 27 January 2025.[18]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Newspaper Batumelebi". bia.ge. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  2. ^ "გაზეთი ბათუმელები". National Parliamentary Library of Georgia (in Georgian). Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  3. ^ "ნეტგაზეთი". mediameter.ge (in Georgian). Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  4. ^ a b "ნეტგაზეთმა რუსულ ენაზეც დაიწყო ახალი ამბების გაშუქება". Netgazeti.ge (in Georgian). October 1, 2024. Archived from the original on May 25, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  5. ^ "Georgia media guide". BBC. October 25, 2024. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  6. ^ "Pressure on Georgian 'Batumelebi' newspaper". Human Rights House. December 2, 2009. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  7. ^ "ნეტგაზეთი 2015 წლის პრესის ევროპული ჯილდოს მფლობელი გახდა". Batumelebi.ge (in Georgian). March 9, 2015. Archived from the original on August 18, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
  8. ^ "გაზეთ "ბათუმელების" მიმართვას უკვე მოჰყვა რეაქცია". radiotavisupleba.ge Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Georgia (in Georgian). December 5, 2009. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  9. ^ "მედიაკოალიცია "გაზეთი ბათუმელების" და "ნეტგაზეთის" დისკრედიტაციის მცდელობებს ეხმიანება". csf.ge (in Georgian). June 9, 2020. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  10. ^ ""ბათუმელებისა" და ნეტგაზეთის განცხადება". Netgazeti.ge (in Georgian). January 13, 2025. Archived from the original on January 29, 2025. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  11. ^ "ბათუმელების რედაქტორი შალვა პაპუაშვილს: ვერ მოგვაწებებთ აგენტის იარლიყს". Netgazeti.ge (in Georgian). April 25, 2024. Archived from the original on May 10, 2024. Retrieved February 12, 2025.
  12. ^ "რუსეთში ნეტგაზეთის რუსულენოვანი გამოცემა დაბლოკეს". Formulanews.ge (in Georgian). April 12, 2022. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
  13. ^ "რუსეთში "ნეტგაზეთის" რუსულენოვანი ვერსია დაბლოკეს". Netgazeti.ge (in Georgian). April 12, 2022. Archived from the original on January 23, 2025. Retrieved January 29, 2025.
  14. ^ "Coalition of 14 embassies demand Amaghlobeli's immediate release". oc-media.org. January 31, 2025. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
  15. ^ "ბათუმში დააკავეს საპროტესტო აქციის ათამდე მონაწილე, მათ შორის "გაზეთ ბათუმელების" დირექტორი". Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty Georgia (in Georgian). January 11, 2025. Retrieved February 4, 2025.
  16. ^ "GYLA: Amaghlobeli's Life in Danger, Urgent Action Needed". Civil Georgia.
  17. ^ "ადვოკატის თქმით, მზია ამაღლობელი შიმშილობის შეწყვეტას არ აპირებს" [Lawyer says Mzia Amaglobeli has no intention of ending hunger strike]. რადიო თავისუფლება. January 23, 2025.
  18. ^ "მზია ამაღლობელის სიცოცხლეს საფრთხე ემუქრება – საია" [Mzia Amaglobeli's life is in danger – GYLA]. რადიო თავისუფლება. January 27, 2025.
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