SOCAR Media is an arm of the state-owned oil behemoth SOCAR, which runs the CBC, Dalga and Khazar television stations and a few radio channels.
Media assets
Television: CBC, CBC Sport, Dalga TV, Khazar TV
Radio: Khazar FM, 100.5 FM, Araz FM
State Media Matrix Typology: State-Controlled (SC)
Ownership and governance
Media outlets in SOCAR Media are 100% owned by the oil company, which is a fully state-owned company. SOCAR Media has been expanding in recent years, its latest acquisition being Khazar TV (a deal concluded in the first half of 2020). Khazar TV is run via a company called Caspian Media Center, which SOCAR plans to fully integrate in its media firm SOCAR Media, according to Azeri journalists and experts.
Source of funding and budget
There is no publicly available information about the budget of SOCAR Media. Azeri journalists abroad say that the media outlets run by SOCAR Media generate funding through ad sales, but also receive significant stipends from the owner, which is a state-owned firm.
Editorial independence
SOCAR is known as a key industrial powerhouse generating significant funds for the president Aliyev regime. The company is planning to build a strong media arm to further cement the government’s control over the country’s mass media. The outlets run by SOCAR Media specialize in entertainment. Their news content is fully supportive of the regime and closely aligned with the government, according to Azeri journalists and experts.
No domestic statute or independent assessment mechanism to validate the editorial independence of the media outlets run by SOCAR Media have been identified.
September 2023