Georgian media figure: “BBC spreads inaccurate information about Azerbaijan”

Georgian media commentator, host of the Georgian program Eucrocracy–Former Europe, Ioane Shaishmelashvili has accused the BBC of circulating inaccurate information about Azerbaijan. 

Speaking at the Azerbaijan–Georgia Media Forum on “The Role of Media in Building Public Trust and Information Security,” he said that information campaigns were frequently distorted and that Azerbaijan had been a target of such practices, Caliber.Az reports via local media. 

He noted that, in his view, the BBC had published material related to journalists and their activities in Azerbaijan that he considered inaccurate, adding that this reflected wider problems in both social media and traditional media environments where false information could spread rapidly.

Shaishmelashvili argued that such cases highlighted a need for stronger safeguards. He questioned how internationally recognised media organisations could release misleading information about Azerbaijan, suggesting that media outlets could be used to advance political interests.

According to him, audiences were often unable to verify the accuracy of the large volume of information they consumed daily.

He also emphasised that media organisations should recognise the potential cross-border impact of their reporting. Journalists, he said, needed to understand that the information they disseminated could affect the national interests of multiple states. Without such awareness, he warned, disinformation could escalate into a major national challenge.

“The level of risk today has reached a scale comparable to a threat to the country,” he concluded.

By Sabina Mammadli