Print media in pre-Soviet Georgian press was the topic of the study by Tsitsino Bukia, who looked at the peculiarities in two newspapers: the social-democratic Ertoba (meaning Unity) and the national-democratic Sakartvelo (meaning Georgia).

During the early 20th century, political pluralism was a phenomenon in Georgia, revealing the country’s thirst for development since the collapse of the Russian Empire – a desire to assimilate with European, liberal democratic values. The Georgian press in the pre-Soviet period contributed to this.

The research used content analysis as a method and analyzed Ertoba and Sakartvelo in 1919. According to the author, the editors of Ertoba were well aware of the importance of propaganda and their own role in spreading the ideology of the party – everything in the paper was aimed at influencing the electoral vote. 

The National-Democratic party had a much tougher, stricter and categorical attitude towards the relations with Russia. They believed that Russia would be resurrected as an ordinary country, while the Social-Democratic party favored a softer approach with Russia. And this was naturally reflected in the newspapers. 

For Ertoba, self-defense was allowed against the aggressors – they considered the defense of democracy a key issue along with the protection of class interests. Indeed, they sought to focus on domestic issues and the transformation of the state, while not neglecting the defense of Georgian democracy. 

The Menshevik, or Democratic, party also saw itself as a defender of the worker’s rights, but nevertheless it was not above telling these workers what the right course of action was. It defended the rights of the workers by asserting that the duty of the stock exchange, now in the hands of the workers, was to give work to the unemployed, rather than fighting the stock exchange. 

In Sakartvelo, on the other hand, the main topics were political, cultural, and economic problems, but the paper also sought to contribute to problem-solving in the development of the country. The paper also believed, and wanted the readers to believe that the Russian Empire had been forgotten. 

There were also calls for privatization of schools, and writings on global issues – such as the perceptive prediction that America would become a superpower after Germany.

In conclusion, Ertoba sought to influence the electorate and advanced the idea that the social-democratic platform was unique. Sakartvelo was different, instead of the electorate, it sought to address the Government. Indeed, the national-democratic platform differed much from both the Mensheviks and the eventually dominant Bolsheviks. 

The article “Propaganda in Pre-Soviet Caucasian Press at The Example of Comparative Analysis of Georgian Newspapers: ‘Ertoba’ (1919) and ‘Sakartvelo’ (1919)” by Tsitsino Bukia is in Media History. (Free abstract). 

Picture: Trinity Gergeti Church, Kazbegi, Georgia by Iman Gozal.

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