Armenian Government Moves to Shut Down Church TV Channel

Armenia’s parliament has approved legislation that could soon take the Shoghakat TV channel, co-owned by the Armenian Apostolic Church, off the air. This comes during rising tensions between Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s government and Catholicos Karekin II, the head of the church.

Under the new government-backed law, authorities can stop the broadcasts of Shoghakat, which has operated for nearly twenty years as a joint project between the state and the church. Since its founding, the channel has focused mainly on cultural, religious, and educational programming. It has not covered political events or the growing conflict between the government and the church leadership.

The decision has drawn criticism from media watchdogs and opposition lawmakers, who describe it as politically motivated. Seven major Armenian press freedom organizations released a joint statement calling the government’s explanation “not convincing” and “misleading.” They said the true reason for the decision lies in “the obviously political context: the steadily escalating confrontation between the authorities and the Armenian Apostolic Church.”

Shoghakat’s current legal status as a “public broadcaster” guarantees its access to Armenia’s national digital television network. The new amendments remove that status, which means that the channel will likely lose its broadcasting frequency and be forced off the air.

The effort to defund and close Shoghakat first surfaced last year during large-scale anti-government protests led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan. Pashinyan’s political allies renewed those calls in mid-2025, after the prime minister began pressuring Catholicos Karekin II and other top church figures to step down.

Members of Pashinyan’s Civil Contract party who introduced the new bill argued that Shoghakat has a small audience, low-quality programs, and inefficient use of public funds. However, the station’s executive director, Mania Ghazaryan, rejected these claims, saying they are not based on any credible data or research.

During a heated debate in parliament, opposition lawmaker Lilit Galstyan demanded evidence supporting the accusations against the channel. One of the bill’s authors, ruling party deputy Taguhi Ghazaryan, responded, “If I thought that any justification would convince you to vote in favor [of the amendments,] I would certainly provide it.”

Press associations and the opposition argue that the government is using financial and administrative excuses to target the church’s influence in society. They see the move as part of a broader campaign by Pashinyan to weaken the role of the Armenian Apostolic Church, which has been critical of his policies.

Ara Shirinyan, the former head of the Public Broadcasting Council, also opposed cutting funding for Shoghakat. He noted that the state’s contribution — about 185 million drams ($480,000) last year — was modest and said public television would need significantly more funds to produce similar cultural and religious content.

With the legal changes now approved in the first reading, Shoghakat’s future appears uncertain. Unless the decision is reversed, Armenia’s only television channel closely tied to the church may soon go dark — marking another chapter in the growing rift between the government and the country’s centuries-old spiritual institution.

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