New TV channel launches in Azerbaijan

A new satellite TV channel called Real TV has started to broadcast in Azerbaijan from 15 March, focusing exclusively in news broadcasting. Mirshahin Agayev, a prominent journalist and former Vice-President of ANS media corporation is the founder and also Director of the new channel.

On 5 March the Azerbaijani National Television and Radio Council (NTRC) issued an indefinite license to Real TV. The license was issued to the Real Analysis Information Center LLC, headed by Mirshahin Agayev.

Khadija Ismayil, an Azerbaijani investigative journalist, posted on Facebook the same day providing some indirect evidence of the new TV channel’s alleged links with Express-Bank which is owned by President Aliyev’s family.

Many former employees from the currently closed ANS media company will be employed at the new TV channel. However, ANS founder and president, Vahid Mustafayev isn’t among them.

• The ANS Independent Broadcasting Media Company was set up by brothers Vahid and Seyfulla Mustafayev and journalist Mirshahin Agayev in November 1991.

• The ANS media company was taken off the air on 18 July 2016 after announcing an interview with disgraced US-based Turkish cleric Fetullah Gulen who was accused of masterminding the 15 July 2016 coup attempt in Turkey. Later on, the media company was finally shut down via court ruling.

• The broadcaster became particular renowned during the Karabakh war when Chingiz Mustafayev (the company founders’ older brother), a war reporter covering the hostilities, was killed on the front-line in 1992.