Context

Media ownership in Armenia reflects the country's complex transition to democracy following the collapse of the Communist Party's totalitarian regime in 1991. During the Communist era, media served entirely as propaganda tools for the regime, operating under strict censorship.

Although the Communist Party's media monopoly ended after the regime's collapse, new commercial media outlets created over the past three decades have largely continued to serve as propaganda instruments, advancing the interests of new economic and political elites.

After two decades of dominance, television is no longer the primary information source for much of Armenian society—the internet and social networks have overtaken it. Print press, which dominated during the first decade of Armenia's independence, now faces collapse due to technological disruption from the internet, lack of investment, declining advertising revenue, and diminishing influence that has driven readers away from newspapers.

Radio, with the exception of Public Radio and Gortsarar aliq (Business Wave), has primarily remained entertainment media in Armenia. Currently, some radio stations and individuals are experimenting with podcast formats, some of which provide news content and can influence public opinion formation.

The internet, and particularly social networks Facebook and Instagram, have become Armenians' primary information source. Social media has brought both opportunities and challenges to the information environment, including growing threats of disinformation and hate speech, algorithmic influence on news distribution, and advertising revenue flowing from traditional media to social platforms.

Bypassing journalists and media outlets, political actors and influential figures increasingly use social media to communicate directly with audiences, thereby reducing media's role as intermediary between power and society. Some political actors have assumed the role of journalists themselves, hosting podcasts and programs about politics.

Political actors frequently insult journalists, accusing them of corruption, producing commissioned content, and serving opponents. This creates an atmosphere of intolerance and undermines already modest public trust in media. Lawsuits filed against journalists on defamation or insult charges increase self-censorship.

This section presents the historical, political, economic, social, and technological conditions in which Armenian media has developed and operates.