First draft of my presentation for the ENPI Media Networking Conference, Tbilisi, Georgia, 13 November 2013

1. CONFLICT VOICES
O N N I K J A M E S K R I KO R I A N
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H T T P : / / W W W . C O N F L I C T - VO I C E S . N E T
H T T P :// W W W . O N N I K - K R I KO R I A N . C O M

2. WHEN WAR IS DECLARED,
T R U T H I S T H E F I R S T C A S UA LT Y
A RT HUR P ON S ON B Y, FA LSE HO O D I N WA RT I ME , 1 9 2 8

3. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
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25,0 0 0 D E AD UN T IL 1 9 9 4 C E AS E FIR E
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1 MIL LI ON RE F U G E E S A N D ID P S
D I S P L AC E D F RO M T H E I R H O M E S
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16 PE R C E N T OF A Z E RB A IJA N
CONTROLLED BY ARMENIAN FORCES
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BORDER SKIRMISHES AND CLASHES,
IN CR E A SE IN SNI PE R I N C I D E N TS
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NE W G E N E RAT I O N S OF A RM E N IAN S A N D
AZ E R B A IJA NI S LI V IN G W I TH OU T
CONTACT WITH THE OTHER
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CONFLICT USED AS A POLITIC AL TOOL
IN A R M E N IA AN D AZ E R B A IJA N
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PEACE STILL ELUSIVE

4. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
[…] people are often inclined to consider their existing attitudes and
beliefs to be true and filter the news through this lens. Thus, they accept
messages in order to maintain their original perceptions. […] bias in the
local media [...] ser ves as a means to fuel and perpetuate hatred. This is
a role the media has and continues to play with regards to the conflict
over Nagorno Karabakh.
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A R M E N I A N A N D A Z E R B A I J A N I I N T E R N AT I O N A L N E WS COV E R AG E ,
C AU C AS U S R E S E AR CH R E S O U R CE CENTERS (CRRC)
http://epfound.am/files/mb_fg_report_finalized_edited_12.27.2008.doc

5. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
[A] negative context [is set] in the public consciousness, which hinders
dialogue and mutual understanding […] Without more accurate and
unbiased information […] free of negative rhetoric and stereotypes,
Armenians and Azerbaijanis will continue to see themselves as
enemies without any common ground.
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A R M E N I A N A N D A Z E R B A I J A N I I N T E R N AT I O N A L N E WS COV E R AG E ,
C AU C AS U S R E S E AR CH R E S O U R CE CE NT E R S (CR R C)
http://epfound.am/files/mb_fg_report_finalized_edited_12.27.2008.doc

6. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H

7. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H

8. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H

9. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H

10. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
Nowhere in the world can you find two groups of people closer to
each other. That is why we often have these stupid disputes between
Armenians and Azeris. "This house is Armenian" or "this house is Azeri."
Or "this music is Armenian or Azeri." This is exactly because the two
have so much in common. [...] I normally say, and people don't like this,
that Armenians are just Christian Azeris and Azeris are just
Muslim Armenians. That is how much they are alike.
SEYMUR BAYCAN, RE-ARMING THE CAUCASUS, AL JAZEERA ENGLISH
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz47DkYn4Kk

11. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
We hear far too little of what I call this “third narrative” of the
Armenian-Azerbaijani conflict, a narrative of peace. It spins the idea
that the two peoples are capable of getting along fine, have lived
together in the past and, if politicians are able to overcome differences
on the Karabakh conflict, can live together in the future. International
mediators are too timid to speak this narrative or feel that it is not
their business. The media in both countries suppresses it.
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THOMAS DE WAAL, SENIOR ASSOCIATE, CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT AND AUTHOR
OF BLACK GARDEN: ARMENIA AND AZERBAIJAN THROUGH PEACE AND WAR
http://conflict-voices.net /conflict_voices_may_2011.html

12. NAGO R NO K A R A B A K H
ABOVE: AZERBAIJANI PRISONER OF WAR (POW)
RIGHT: AZERBAIJANI POW AND CIVILIAN HOSTAGES
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PHOTOS: © ONNIK KRIKORIAN 1994

13. G L O B A L VO I C E S
Global Voices is a community of more than 300 bloggers and translators
around the world who work together to bring readers repor ts from blogs and
citizen media ever ywhere, with an emphasis on voices that are not ordinarily
heard in the mainstream media.
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Global Voices is translated into more than 30 languages by volunteer
translators, who have formed the Lingua project. Additionally, Global Voices
has an Advocacy website and network to help people speak out online in
places where their voices are censored.
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Rising Voices to help marginalized communities use citizen media to be heard.

14. G L O B A L VO I C E S

15. D I G I TA L M E D I A
Throughout histor y, war has affected media, with conflict often creating
an information void. In the 21st centur y, media has begun to affect war
more than ever before. Digital media technologies [...] have increased
communication and information dissemination in conflict settings [...].
These new tools can be used to foment violence or to foster
peace, and it is possible to build communication systems that
encourage dialogue and nonviolent political solutions.
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IVAN SIGAL, DIGITAL MEDIA IN CONFLICT-PRONE SOCIETIES, CENTER FOR
INTERNATIONAL MEDIA ASSISTANCE (CIMA)
http://cima.ned.org/publications/research-repor ts/digital-media-conflict-prone-societies

16. D I G I TA L M E D I A
Anyone who believes that all citizen media are objective and impar tial
is either mad or hasn't actually read any citizen media. […] What's
become ver y difficult is using citizen media to understand what's
actually happening on the ground. As we all know, some of the
reports from both camps in the South Ossetian conflict were
likely manufactured and inaccurate. This sor t of situation can get
even more complicated when there aren't impar tial journalists on the
ground.
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ETHAN ZUCKERMAN, GLOBAL VOICES CO-FOUNDER, MIT MEDIA LAB
http://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.ru/ar ticles/13149/

17. D I G I TA L M E D I A

18. PEACE ON FACEBOOK

19. CONFLICT VOICES

20. CONFLICT VOICES

21. A CYB E R U TOP IA ?
I study the ways new media shapes people's perceptions of the world.
It's my fond hope that social networks such as Facebook will help users
broaden their perspectives by listening to a different set of people than
they encounter in their daily life. But I fear services such as
Facebook may be turning us into imaginary cosmopolitans.
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ETHAN ZUCKERMAN, GLOBAL VOICES CO-FOUNDER, MIT MEDIA LAB
http://www.eng.kavkaz-uzel.ru/ar ticles/13149/

22. A CYB E R U TOP IA ?
The reason why the KGB wants you to join Facebook is because it
allows them to learn more about you from afar. It allows them to
identify certain social graphs and social connections between
activists. Many of these relationships are now self-disclosed by activists
by joining various groups.
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EVGENY MOROZOV, THE NET DELUSION: DARK SIDE OF INTERNET FREEDOM
http://www.rferl.org/content/interview_morozov_internet_democracy_promotion/
2284105.html

23. A CYB E R U TOP IA ?

24. IC T 4 D

25. QU E S T I O N S
[…] the internet is not magic; it is a tool. Anyone who wants to
use it to bring nations closer together has to show initiative, and be
ready to travel physically as well as vir tually. As with the telegraph
before it—also hailed as a tool of peace — the internet does
nothing on its own.
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THE ECONOMIST, A CYBER-HOUSE DIVIDED
http://www.economist.com/node/16943885?stor y_id=16943885

26. CONTACT
EMAIL
onewmphoto@gmail.com
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WEB
http://www.onnik-krikorian.com
http://www.conflict-voices.net
FACEBOOK
http://www.facebook.com/onewmphoto
http://www.facebook.com/conflictvoices
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TWITTER
http://www.twitter.com/onewmphoto
http://www.twitter.com/caucasusproject
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