‘Absurd’: Arman Abovyan on decision to suspend Sputnik Armenia broadcast for 30 days

Speaking with Alpha News, political analyst Arman Abovyan called the decision to suspend the broadcast of the Sputnik Armenia radio station for 30 days absurd.

“Some violations were allegedly discovered during the Sputnik broadcast. This is completely absurd. For example, the Abovyan Time podcast is said to spread panic and provide unverified information. In this case, I can say one thing: I have bad news for the authorities. My podcast was, is, and will be based on the information and the truth that you present. If your information causes panic and is a lie, then don’t voice it so that we don’t analyze it either,” Abovyan said.

According to Abovyan, this step is the clearest and most direct manifestation of censorship․

“This fits completely with anti-Armenian sentiments. In fact, this is the most direct manifestation of censorship in the media, according to which we have a situation where they are trying to silence dissidents. But they forgot one thing. We now live in a time when it is very difficult to use technology to silence people who want to express their thoughts,” our interlocutor noted.

Half-jokingly, half-seriously, Abovyan thanked the authorities, saying that after this decision, the number of views on his podcast increased sharply.