The history of the news agency Azertac goes back to 1920 when it was founded. The agency operated under various names during the Soviet period. At the moment, the agency provides news content in eight languages.
Media assets
News agency: Azertac
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
Azertac is a state-owned news agency whose management is appointed by the government, according to journalists following Azerbaijan.
Source of funding and budget
Due to the total lack of transparency in the Azeri administration, the budget of Azertac is not known. Journalists following Azerbaijan say that the agency draws most of its budget from state subsidies.
Editorial independence
Azertac operates in line with a series of norms that require the agency to disseminate information about the government. There is no instance of criticism of authorities on Azertac’s news feed.
No domestic statute or independent assessment mechanism to validate the editorial independence of Azertac have been identified.
September 2023