Candidates for Public TV Board Named

President Saakashvili nominated candidates for the seven vacant seats in the 15-member Georgian public broadcaster’s board of trustees.

Proposed 21 candidates, as envisaged by the law, are grouped into three for each vacant seat. The parliament will have to vote for each of the three candidates nominated for one seat and the one who garners most of the votes will become the board member.

Following candidates are nominated for the first vacant seat: Merab Basilaia, media programs director at Tbilisi-based non-governmental organization ALPE; Malkhaz Narindoshvili, a program coordinator with Tbilisi-based non-governmental organization UN Association of Georgia, who previously was with a think-tank Liberty Institute and Giga Nasaridze, who was a host of a satirical show at the Rustavi 2 TV.

Second vacant seat: Nodar Sarjveladze, a chairman of the Christian-Democratic Institute, a think-tank set up by Christian-Democratic Movement, a leading party in the parliamentary minority; Joni Kalandadze, currently unemployed, as referred in the list of candidates and Iago Kachkachishvili, a pollster and a sociologist. The latter is among the candidates, which were nominated by a group of media activists known as Media Club.

Third: Levan Popkhadze, Imedi TV employee, whose candidacy reportedly is lobbied by MP Jondi Bagaturia of Georgian Troupe party; Inga Bolotauri, an employee of the Parliament, affiliated with the Georgian Troupe party and Emzar Goguadze, currently unemployed.

Fourth: Badri Gvaramia, executive director of the Tbilisi municipality’s emergency ambulance service; Avtandil Antidze, a Ministry of Defense employee and Nana Gogochashvili, currently unemployed.

Fifth: Giorgi Meladze of Liberty Institute; Lela Gaprindashvili of the association Women’s Initiative for Equality and Nino Danelia, a media researcher with School of Journalism and Media Management at Georgian Institute of Public Affairs (GIPA). Both Danelia and Gaprindashvili are candidates nominated by Media Club.

Sixth: Lia Chakhunashvili, dean of the Caucasus School of Media at Caucasus University (Media Club candidate); Mzia Gogniashvili, a journalist and Maia Misheladze, a journalist.

Seventh: Mikheil Aidinov, head of the Association of Russian-Speaking Journalists of Georgia; Shorena Shaverdashvili, an editor of the magazine Liberali (Media Club candidate); Tamaz Bibiluri, an editor of a small newspaper Skhivi.

The Parliament will vote on the proposed list of candidates this month.

According to a comprehensive research by Caucasus Research Resource Centers about the Georgian media, made public in November, the public TV is not the first choice of receiving information for many Georgians with only 25% of surveyed respondents saying they usually turn to public TV for news and shows related to current events. According to the same survey only 26% said they fully or somewhat trust public TV and 18% said they fully or somewhat distrust it. The survey also showed lack of public knowledge about the source of financing of the broadcaster.

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