Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 History of Armenia
1.1.1 Political history of Armenia before and after independence
Armenia is considered as one of the oldest nations in the world. Armenian Highland is the cradle of Indo-European nations together with neighboring territories of Asia Minor and the Iranian Plateau. Armenians call themselves Hay and their country Hayastan. Its history is very old as the Armenian "Hayasa" country is mentioned in Hittite sources from the second millennium B.C., which were found in the capital of the Hittite state during archeological excavations.
Armenia has a long history with strong culture which is shown in the remaining of the ancient buildings. He also expresses that during the Urartu kingdom includes Erebuni Fortress (782 B.C.), located within Yerevan and from which the today's capital city gets its name. As a result of invasions of Alexander the Great in the IV century B.C. Armenia became part of the Hellenic world. In 189 B.C. an independent Armenian state - Greater Armenia (Armenia Major) - was formed and ruled by the Artashesian dynasty.
One of the world's oldest civilizations, Armenia once included Mount Ararat, which biblical tradition identifies as the mountain that Noah's ark rested on after the flood. It was the first country in the world to officially embrace Christianity as its state religion and became the first Christian nation in the world (A.D. 301). The first centuries after Christ were wrought with ceaseless wars between Roman Empire and powerful Parthian empire. The battlefield between these two empires was Armenia, which as a result became divided into two parts - East and West - by the 4th century.
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1.2 Problem Statement
Compare the media system, tools of media and working atmosphere of Armenian media before and after independence from Soviet Union and determine the nature of any relationship between media system and working styles. Identify the impact of independence of Armenia on media systems
1. Is there a difference in media systems of Armenia before and after independence from Soviet Union?
2. Is there any major change in Armenian media system after the independence from Soviet Union?
The main objectives of this research are to identify, evaluate and compare the media systems and working styles of the journalists in Armenia before and after independence from Soviet Union. The research will mainly focus on Armenia’s political development from the waning years of communist rule to today’s burgeoning independent republic, and specially state the role of media from the age of glasnost to today’s democracy. The research also aims at studying the media laws and major changes with specific examples.
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Chapter 2 The history of media in Armenia before independence
2.1 History of Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic
History has proved at times that numerous empires and civilizations have been eradicated from the world map and today there remains can only be found in the texts and sculptures which are being discovered in the excavations at various sites throughout the world. The present day Russia too, has evolved after the fall of many such kingdoms and races which existed there in their respective periods. It is the successor to the former Soviet Union, which in turn came to existence after the fall of Russian Empire after the glorious “Revolution of1917”, which lasted for 5 years giving rise to a politically reorganized Soviet Union. The Russian Empire too, was one of largest empires that ever existed in the human history, surpassed in landmass only by British Empire and Mongolian Empire.
The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, in short known as the Soviet Union or Soviet Russia, was a constitutionally socialist state that existed between 1922 and 1991. Since from its inception, the Soviet Union had a single party system which was dominated by the Communist Party of Soviet Union till its end, when the economy finally collapsed leading to the evolution of a further new politically and economically oriented Russian Federation. The motto of Soviet Union was “Workers of the world, Unite!”. This popular slogan of the time adapted from The Communist Manifesto (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels.
The Republics of the Soviet Union or the Union Republics of the Soviet Union were ethnically based administrative units that were subordinated directly to the Government of the Soviet Union. For most of its history, the Soviet Union was a highly centralized state; the decentralization reforms during the era of Restructuring and Openness conducted by Mikhail Gorbachev inadvertently led to thedissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.
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2.2History of Armenian mass media
The Republic of Armenia, newspaper circulations are small and the press industry represents a tiny portion of an emerging market economy. The country's tepid investigative journalism accompanies comparable democratic development. In the late 1980s the former Soviet Republic joined others in the move to independence that resulted in the collapse of the USSR. The official proclamation came in April 1991, at which time the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) was signed and accepted as the basis for developing domestic law. The National Assembly adopted its own Law on the Press and Mass Media in October 1991, guaranteeing the right of access to information, freedom of speech, and a free and independent press. The same principles are embodied in the 1995 Constitution. However, these "guarantees" remain subject to the interpretation of a constitutionally powerful executive. New civil and criminal codes were enacted in 1999, a new broadcast media law in 2000, and a new licensing law in 2001. All three were passed in reaction to the October 27, 1999, terrorist attack on the Armenian Parliament that killed the Prime Minister, Speaker, and six others. The new laws have facilitated the power of government to encroach upon the freedom of the press. However, Armenia also became a member of the Council of Europe in 2001, which carries obligations to guard against threats of excessive state powers restricting a free and independent media.
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Chapter 3 The history of media law in Armenia after independence ··························· 22
3.1 History of Armenian mass media······················ 22
3.1.1 Print media······························· 23
3.1.2 Television : Television News Programs························ 25
Chapter 4 Evolution of Armenian mass media: The difference mass media before and after independence ·········31
4.1 Armenian mass media during Soviet Union····························· 31
4.1.1 Media changes in Soviet Union before collapse ···························· 31
4.1.2 Party media as a precursor to Glasnost ······························· 32
Chapter 4 Evolution of Armenian mass media: The difference mass media before and after independence
4.1 Armenian mass media during Soviet Union
4.1.1 Media changes in Soviet Union before collapse
In the mid- 1980s the media landscape across the Soviet Union underwent revolutionary changes when Mikhail Gorbachev introduced perestroika and then glasnost. Perestroika aimed to restructure the sagging Soviet economy by liberalizing many of its tight linkages to government, whereas glasnost was intended to open the political system to new ideas and thoughts, lifting the Iron Curtain that had so isolated the citizens of the Soviet Union. The unintended consequences of these institutional changes were to put in motion the forces that eventually led to the collapse of the communist regime.
Glasnost, in particular, changed the nature of information flows across the Soviet Union. The openness and greater access to information filled a void that had long kept Soviet citizens in the dark. Taking advantage of the greater freedom that glasnost afforded, journalists began to use their own discretion in providing greater and more diverse information to their readers. The result was more access to information. With this greater liberty, the Soviet Union moved closer to the dismantling of central control and followed the path toward democracy. The instantiation of glasnost, which began in the communist party’s centralized media system, eventually trickled down to the rest of society and the Soviet republics.
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Conclusion
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