The Communications Commission has deemed TV Pirveli, Formula and Mtavari Arkhi to have violated the principle of impartiality in broadcasting news, and freed all three broadcasters from administrative liability. Specifically, the Communications Commission received a complaint from the political union Georgian Dream - Democratic Georgia, based on which the Communications Commission studied the issue and determined that in the news programmes aired by TV Pirveli and Formula, the broadcasters expressed their own position, which contradicts the principle of impartiality of broadcasting and violates the terms of the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting. 

In addition, the complaint disputed the information disseminated on social networks by TV Pirveli, Formula and Mtavari Arkhi. According to the law, the same legal regulations apply in this case. Therefore, the Commission deemed that there was a further violation of the Georgian Law on Broadcasting. 

The political union Georgian Dream – Democratic Georgia also indicated in its complaint that the broadcasters did not separate fact and opinion in the news programmes, which it claimed violated the terms of the Georgian Law on Broadcasting, and specifically Article 54.2. However, after studying the issue, the Communications Commission deemed it irrelevant to rule on the violation of the said clause, considering that, according to Article 54.5 of the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting, it is prohibited for a broadcaster to express a position for or against any political party, public agency, religious association or other interest group in the news and socio-political programmes. 

Having studied the circumstances, the Communications Commission determined that the broadcasters violated the terms of Article 54.5 and Article 59¹.5 of the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting. In case of confirmation of a violation, the Communications Commission is authorised to impose sanctions on broadcasters in accordance with the legislation. However, since the violation was committed during the transitional period defined by Article 76⁴ of the Law of Georgia on Broadcasting, the Commission also took into account the fact that it had not yet ruled on the standards of impartiality of the broadcasters, and had not assessed the requirements for broadcasters to maintain impartiality in news programmes and refrain from expressing their own opinions. In light of these circumstances, the Commission deemed the broadcasters to have violated the law, but freed them from administrative liability. 

“I can promise you that we will be as faithful as possible in enforcing the law, especially until the practice has been implemented. Just like the wider public, we want to prevent the spread of disinformation and ensure that facts are not misinterpreted or deliberately distorted, that specific opinions are not turned into facts, and that we can protect the interests of the viewers,” ComCom Chairman Kakha Bekauri stated. 

On 1 April 2025, the amendments to the Law on Broadcasting reorganised the following requirements for broadcasters: due accuracy of facts and the right to reply; fairness and impartiality; inviolability of private life; obtaining and/or transmitting information by the broadcaster using covert methods; coverage of armed conflict, accidents and/or other emergency situations, and issues of protection of minors participating in the programme. It is worth noting that prior to the law coming into effect, most of the aforementioned requirements were enforced only by the broadcaster's self-regulatory body, whose decisions could not be appealed before a court, the Commission, or other administrative bodies. Based on the 1 April amendments to the law, the Communications Commission has been granted the authority to legally respond to the violations of the listed requirements.