The Armenian press, which has stopped performing its main function – reporting objective information to the readers – and is turning into a political component, an integral part of policy, Naira Zohrabyan, a member of the Prosperous Armenia Party, told NEWS.am. On the other hand, she considers the Armenian press “one of the major achievements of our independence.”

Mrs. Zohrabyan, who worked for the Haykakan Zhamanak (Armenian Time) newspaper for years, pointed out that the press is now divided into two camps, one supporting the authorities the other, the Opposition.

“Without mentioning any names, I would like to say that news websites are not more independent and impartial. As a former journalist, in defense of the press, I would like to note that if mass media were economically independent, problems of impartiality and justice would be resolved. That is the problem needs a comprehensive approach. This is the only way of providing readers with pure information, without imposing the political sponsors’ viewpoints on them,” Zohrabyan said.

As regards the professional level of Armenian mass media, Zohrabyan pointed out “frequent distortion if values.” In many cases, freedom of speech is viewed as foul language, which is a serious problem for our press and needs discussing.

Responding to a question concerning a period when the Armenian press was relatively free and impartial, Zohrabyan said it was during the first years of independence. “Later, when the press’ role in shaping the public opinion increased, it turned into an integral part of political process. True, the role of the press is shaping public opinion. However, only independent press can shape really independent opinions,” Zohrabyan said.