ANALYSIS: Media Under Fire. 29 Lawsuits, Growing Pressure on Journalists in Armenia.

Armenia’s media landscape is feeling the heat. In just the first half of 2025, 29 lawsuits were filed against journalists and media outlets — all part of what press freedom watchdogs are calling a worrying trend of mounting pressure on independent voices.

According to Ashot Melikyan, chair of the Committee to Protect Freedom of Expression (CPFE), things have taken a turn for the worse. From April to June alone, CPFE documented 36 separate cases of pressure on journalists — including two physical assaults, both allegedly committed by law enforcement officers.

“We’ve seen a clear increase in violations of the right to access and share information,” Melikyan said. 39 cases were reported in the second quarter, up from 29 earlier this year.

And the legal crackdown is accelerating. All 16 lawsuits filed in the last three months were for defamation or insult — often from current or former government officials or political figures.

“It’s a negative and deeply troubling shift,” Melikyan warned.

Melikyan says this spike in lawsuits and pressure comes against a backdrop of political tension — including an attempted coup, high-profile arrests (like Russian-Armenian businessman Samvel Karapetyan), and increasingly sharp divides in public discourse.

“Most media outlets are now openly aligned with political factions,” he noted. “Balanced reporting is becoming rare. Public interest is being sidelined.”

Tensions are rising not just between political camps, but also between journalists and officials. Opposition-leaning outlets report strained relationships with ruling party deputies, while pro-government media often find themselves shut out by the opposition.

It’s not just lawsuits and censorship — verbal attacks are becoming normalized at the highest levels of leadership. Melikyan specifically criticized Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan and his wife for their use of vulgar language online.

“I’m ashamed when I read their comments,” Melikyan said. “Leaders should set a higher standard. Instead, we’re seeing toxic language becoming common — from the top down.”

To address the growing hostility online, a new bill is in the works. The Ministry of Justice plans to expand defamation and insult laws to apply to social media users, not just traditional media. Under the proposed law, courts could force the removal of offensive content, not just demand corrections or replies.

Melikyan supports the idea in principle — especially if the response is proportional.

“We’re not talking about deleting entire articles. Just the parts that cross the line,” he said.

In a twist, Armenia recently moved up nine places in the 2025 World Press Freedom Index from Reporters Without Borders, landing at 34th out of 180 countries. The government proudly shared the news, but ignored the second half of the report, which warned of “unprecedented disinformation and hate speech.”

Melikyan says that can’t be ignored.

“The ranking is good, but it doesn’t reflect the full story. We have serious issues here, and they’re getting worse.”

Adding fuel to the fire, a new survey from the International Republican Institute (IRI) shows deep dissatisfaction among Armenian youth. Nearly half of respondents aged 18–35 think the country is on the wrong track, and a whopping 63% say they don’t trust any political leader.

That, analysts say, could open the door for a new political movement — especially one that fuses Western values with nationalist rhetoric, posing a potential threat to Pashinyan’s leadership in the future.

Meanwhile, trust in institutions like the Church and government varies widely by generation, signaling potential realignment in Armenia’s political and cultural identity.

The situation is complex, but one thing’s clear: Armenia’s journalists are under pressure — from the courts, from politicians, and from a public that’s increasingly divided. And while lawmakers debate new ways to manage online speech, civil society is left asking a simple question: Who’s protecting the people trying to tell the truth?