Shows / The Caucasus Digest
The Caucasus Digest
Your weekly view into the Caucasus region with the OC Media team. Every week, we break down some of the biggest topics in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the Russian North Caucasus.
Episodes
- The Caucasus Digest
Pashinyan just won in June — why is he calling for snap elections?
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has suggested that his government might call for snap elections, despite being elected five months earlier. He hopes…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is Georgia about to ban the entire opposition?
The Georgian Constitutional Court has begun hearing the opposition ban case, with the ruling Georgian Dream party moving closer to dismantle the country's…
- The Caucasus Digest
Culture Takeover: Kordz on music and Georgian politics
This week, editor Yousef Bardouka and culture and features editor Xandie (Alexandra) Kuenning took over the Caucasus Digest to speak with Kordz, a Georgian…
- The Caucasus Digest
Has Azerbaijan outgrown its big brother Turkey?
This week, Caucasus Digest hosts Robin and Mariam sit down with editor Nate Ostiller to break down apparent tensions and disagreements between Azerbaijan and…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is Georgian Dream falling apart?
This week, Caucasus Digest hosts Robin and Mariam sit down with Georgia staff writer Mikheil Gvadzabia sit down to talk about the dramatic shifts the ruling…
- The Caucasus Digest
Where is the Azerbaijani opposition?
Caucasus Digest host Robin Fabbro sits down with Yousef Bardouka and contributor Cavid Agha to talk about Azerbaijan's opposition groups. The three break down…
- The Caucasus Digest
How we cover conflict in the Caucasus
Caucasus Digest host Robin Fabbro sits down with OC Media co-founder Dominik Cagara and Georgia staff writer Lana Koakaia to talk about how OC Media covers…
- The Caucasus Digest
Pashinyan vs the Church
Caucasus Digest hosts Mariam Nikuradze and Robin Fabbro sit down with OC Media's Armenia staff writer Arshaluys Barseghyan to break down the conflict between…
- The Caucasus Digest
Examining Armenia's tense relations with Russia
This week, editor Yousef Bardouka sat down with Armenia staff writers Ani Ghulinyan and Arshaluys Barseghyan to break down the worsening Armenia–Russia…
- The Caucasus Digest
Feature Spotlight: how Georgia is handling addiction treatment and harm reduction
OC Media co-founder Mariam Nikuradze and editor Yousef Bardouka sit down with Caucasus Digest co-producer Tamuna Chkareuli to discuss her latest feature for OC…
- The Caucasus Digest
Reading Bahruz Samadov's letter from prison
OC Media co-founders Mariam Nikuradze and Dominik Cagara sit down with editor Yousef Bardouka to discuss the imprisonment of OC Media contributor Bahruz…
- The Caucasus Digest
Armenia's new parliament: what does day one say about Armenian politics?
The Armenian Parliament has recently held its first session after the June elections. This week, OC Media's Mariam Nikuradze, Yousef Bardouka, and Ani…
- The Caucasus Digest
Are there any free journalists left in Azerbaijan?
This week, Robin Fabbro, Mariam Nikuradze, and Javid Agha sat down to discuss the recent sentencing of several journalists from Azerbaijani independent media…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is free speech in Georgia dead?
This week, Robin Fabbro and Mariam Nikuradze sat down with Georgia staff writer Mikheil Gvadzabia to discuss the Georgian authoritie' crackdown on free speech…
- The Caucasus Digest
Why can't Georgia's opposition get along?
This week, Robin Fabbro and Mariam Nikuradze sat down with Georgia staff writer Mikheil Gvadzabia to talk about Georgia's oppositon, including the charges…
- The Caucasus Digest
Who attended Khamenei's funeral from the Caucasus?
This week, Mariam Nikuradze sat down with OC Media editors Yousef Bardouka and Nate Ostiller to talk about the delegations Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia…
- The Caucasus Digest
Has Georgia's repression plateaued?
This week, editor-in-chief Robin Fabbro and OC Media co-founder Mariam Nikuradze spoke with Georgia staff writer Mikheil Gvadzabia about the current state of…
- The Caucasus Digest
Why did Azerbaijan block OC Media's website?
This week, editor-in-chief Robin Fabbro and OC Media co-founder Mariam Nikuradze spoke with OC Media contributor Javid Agha about Azerbaijan's recent blocking…
- The Caucasus Digest
Where next for Armenia?
OC Media's Caucasus Digest is back after a year-long hiatus! For our relaunch, editor-in-chief Robin Fabbro and his new co-host, OC Media co-founder Mariam…
- The Caucasus Digest
We're back!
This Wednesday, 17 June, tune in to listen to listen OC Media editor-in-chief Robin Fabbro, his new co-host OC Media's co-founder Mariam Nikuradze, and…
- The Caucasus Digest
Can OC Media survive in a new global reality?
The recent cuts to US foreign aid have affected media outlets across the Caucasus and the world — including OC Media. This week, OC Media editor-in-chief Robin…
- The Caucasus Digest
Mzia Amaghlobeli's arrest
Mzia Amaghlobeli, the director of Georgian news sites Batumelebi and Netgazeti, has been arrested on charges of assaulting a police officer after slapping…
- The Caucasus Digest
Ukraine's recognition of the Circassian Genocide
On 9 January, Ukraine's Parliament has recognised the Russian Empire's 19th century genocide of the Circassians, during which Russian forced killed or deported…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgia marks holiday season with daily protests
OC Media's Robin Fabbro, Mariam Nikuradze, and Shota Kincha sit down and chat about the protests against the Georgian government's decision to halt EU…
- The Caucasus Digest
The Caucasus and the regime change in Syria
OC Media's Robin Fabbro, Nate Ostiller, Arshaluys Barseghyan, and Yousef Bardouka talk about the regime change in Syria and what it means for the Caucasian…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgia's EU U-turn and spontaneous protests
OC Media's Robin Fabbro and Mariam Nikuradze talk about the spontaneous protest movement which erupted after the Georgian government's announcement that the…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgian Dream launch parliament — what's next?
Georgian Dream have launched the new parliament without any opposition, amidst continued calls for an investigation into irregularities in the same…
- The Caucasus Digest
Donald Trump and the South Caucasus
Last week, Donald Trump was re-elected for a second term as president of the United States. This week, Robin Fabbro and OC Media editors Alexandra Kuenning and…
- The Caucasus Digest
Greta Thunberg on COP29 in Azerbaijan
With the UN COP conference soon kicking off in Baku, we sat down with Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg to talk about the choice of Azerbaijan, an…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgia gears up for the 2024 parliamentary elections
With Georgia's parliamentary elections inching closer, both the ruling Georgian Dream party and the many groups representing the opposition are scrambling to…
- The Caucasus Digest
Shukruti's last stand against Georgian Manganese
The residents of Shukruti, a village in Georgia's western Chiatura region, have been protesting mining under their village carried out by Georgian Manganese…
- The Caucasus Digest
Kesaria Abramidze's murder and transphobia in Georgia
The high-profile murder of Kesaria Abramidze, a prominent Georgian trans model and media personality, has sent shockwaves through Georgia's queer community…
- The Caucasus Digest
'A year of uncertainty' since Nagorno-Karabakh's surrender
It has been a year since Nagorno-Karabakh's surrender and dissolution following an Azerbaijani assault on the region. The assault pushed the vast majority of…
- The Caucasus Digest
Brics and the South Caucasus
BRICS, an intergovernmental organisation named after its core members, Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa, appears to be making inroads in the…
- The Caucasus Digest
Podcast | The Bahruz Samadov case
Bahruz Samadov, a political analyst, OC Media contributor, and outspoken advocate for peace with Armenia has been arrested in Azerbaijan and charged with…
- The Caucasus Digest
The Beslan siege: 20 years on
The siege of Beslan has left a scar on both North Ossetia and Russia. Twenty years on, many in North Ossetia still await the results of an investigation into…
- The Caucasus Digest
Why are Evolution Georgia's employees on strike?
On 12 July, employees of Evolution Georgia, an online gambling platform, began a strike demanding better working conditions and pay and an end to abusive…
- The Caucasus Digest
Who or what's to blame for the Daghestan attacks?
June's deadly and coordinated attacks on synagogues, churches, and police posts in Daghestan's Makhachkala and Derbent have led to the deaths of 22 people, as…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is Azerbaijan a champion of anti-colonialism?
Azerbaijan appears to be trying to position itself as a champion of the anti-colonial movement by criticising France's colonial past and supporting…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgian Dream's assault on queer rights
The ruling Georgian Dream party has introduced a legislative package that would ban 'LGBT propaganda', potentially setting back decades of progress on queer…
- The Caucasus Digest
'Greenwashing' in Azerbaijan and COP29
Azerbaijan, a country whose economy depends heavily on fossil fuels, is set to host the United Nations' annual climate change conference, COP29, in November…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is it too late for Georgia's democracy?
OC Media's Robin Fabbro, Mariam Nikuradze, and Shota Kincha sit down to discuss whether Georgia's democracy could survive with the passing of the draconic…
- The Caucasus Digest
Why is an Armenian priest leading a crusade against the government?
Tavush for the Motherland, a movement fronted by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, has made headlines protesting in Armenia's north and in the capital Yerevan…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgia's foreign agent law passes — what's next?
The foreign agent law has passed its third and final reading in the Georgian parliament despite mass protests against the law throughout the country. This…
- The Caucasus Digest
A week of protests against Georgia's foreign agent law
Georgians have once again come out to protest the foreign agents bill after the ruling Georgian Dream party reintroduced the draft law a year after aborting…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is Chechnya banning lezginka?
Chechnya's Culture Ministry said earlier this month that the Russian republic would issue restrictions on music slower than 80 bpm and faster than 116 bpm. At…
- The Caucasus Digest
The 'Russian Law' returns to Georgia
The ruling Georgian Dream party has reintroduced its controversial foreign agents law, a bill that the party was forced to abort after two nights of mass…
- The Caucasus Digest
NATO's stakes in the South Caucasus
Last week, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg toured the South Caucasus to visit the leaders of Armenia, Azerbaijan, and Georgia. This week, we speak to…
- The Caucasus Digest
Azerbaijan's media crackdown continues
In early March, Azerbaijani police raided the offices of Toplum TV and arrested several of their journalists on charges of smuggling. The targeting of the…
- The Caucasus Digest
Is Armenia going to join the European Union?
In recent weeks, senior Armenian officials have expressed an intent and interest in the country growing closer to Europe, and perhaps even joining the European…
- The Caucasus Digest
Surviving on $8 a month: is Georgia on track for a real living wage?
Georgia's minimum wage has been stuck at $8 a month since 1999, but in recent years, unions and civil society organisations have called on the government to…
- The Caucasus Digest
Are Armenia and Azerbaijan heading towards war?
Last week, Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan warned that Azerbaijan might be preparing to launch a full-scale war. His warning came amidst peace…
- The Caucasus Digest
Against shame culture: virginity tests and sex education in Armenia
Last week, a bill on domestic violence passed its first hearing in Armenia's parliament. The changes would classify virginity tests, a controversial practice…
- The Caucasus Digest
The elections that had no one on the edge of their seat
President Ilham Aliyev has prolonged his decades-long rule of Azerbaijan, securing a fifth term after winning the presidential elections this week — elections…
- The Caucasus Digest
Georgians take on predatory lending
The eviction of the Khatiashvili family from their home in Tbilisi last week has led to outrage in Georgia and accusations that the government is taking an…
- The Caucasus Digest
The Amulsar mine returns
After over a decade of controversy over environmental, labour, and economic concerns, the Armenian government has finally greenlit the operation of the Amulsar…
- The Caucasus Digest
What's next for Georgia on its path to Europe?
Georgia may finally have secured EU candidate status, but some in Georgia still question just how committed the ruling Georgian Dream party is to taking the…
- The Caucasus Digest
Mandatory military service and 'fictional' priests in Georgia
Georgia's defence code is stamping out loopholes that young Georgians use to get out of military service, as rights activists in the country warn that new…
- The Caucasus Digest
Azerbaijan cracks down on the media
Last week, Azerbaijani authorities raided the offices of AbzasMedia, an independent news outlet covering corruption in the country. They arrested four of its…
- The Caucasus Digest
Are the rights of queer Armenians being forgotten?
The recent suicide of a queer Armenian teenager shook many in Armenia, with activists accusing the authorities of lacking the sensitivity or willingness to…