Irakli Rukhadze, Chairman of Imedi TV's Board, said:
I strongly contest the EU Parliament's flawed reasoning in its resolution recommending sanctions against me for owning Imedi TV in Georgia.
This resolution is based on a provable falsehood and mischaracterisation of Imedi TV, advanced by members of the Georgian opposition. This mischaracterisation has been accepted at face value by the European Parliament. European lawmakers may think that these measures will prevent democratic backsliding in Georgia, but they actually risk undermining the wishes of most Georgians, as well as essential press freedoms in the country.
For the avoidance of any doubt, Imedi TV is editorially independent. We are a commercial channel competing for viewers in a free, varied and pluralistic TV market comprising scores of private channels. Of all of those channels, we are by far the most watched and most trusted. Georgians don't switch on to Imedi TV because they have no other options. They watch us because they want to.
Some commentators in the West have likened our country's media scene to Russia's. That is nonsense, as is the claim that Imedi TV is a government mouthpiece. I invite anybody who is trying to form a view about Imedi TV to watch our output and judge us upon it. They will quickly find that we do not shy away from reporting on incidents of violence, whether against journalists, protestors or the police.
Imedi TV and its staff have been steadfast advocates for freedom of expression and have unapologetically promoted press freedom in Georgia. Many of our journalists suffered first hand under the Saakashvili regime, when our offices were ransacked by armed police, and the channel shut down and expropriated by the government. Once Imedi TV was taken off the air by the previous government, other smaller channels were also suppressed. Imedi TV stands vigilant against this ever being repeated in Georgia.
It is also quite wrong for MEPs to allege that we are anti-Western or pro-Russian; and it is unfortunate that they seemingly voted on the basis of false claims without taking any steps to verify them. As a US Citizen who has spent most of my life in the West, I would add that I have first-hand understanding of the benefits that EU membership and closer alignment with the West would bring to Georgia. It would also bring clear commercial benefits to many of the Georgian businesses in which I hold investments.
Imedi TV's ratings are consistently four times higher than the next largest channel in Georgia. Silencing us, whether via parliamentary resolutions or other means, would be like shutting down CBS, NBC and ABC simultaneously in the US.
Inside Georgia and outside it, not everybody likes what Imedi TV stands for. But millions of Georgian viewers have a different opinion, and that opinion needs to be respected.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250218630456/en/
Contacts:
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