Looking Back on 17 Successful Years of Georgia Today

Georgia Today this week turns 17. On March 24, 2000, George Sharashidze and his partners decided to fill a gap in the Georgian media market by offering a bright, fresh and modern newspaper covering local and regional news in English. The mission statement was as follows:

“GEORGIA TODAY aims to offer the most comprehensive, objective, and unbiased information about contemporary Georgia and spread it throughout the world. With the largest distribution area and the highest quality printing and layout, we pride ourselves on GEORGIA TODAY’s reliability, professionalism and constant striving for improvement”.

GEORGIA TODAY is Georgia’s leading independent English-language newspaper, published weekly since 2000 and from November 2015 rebranded and divided into two weekly editions: what you are reading now- a Friday Georgia Today (GT) newspaper covering Politics, Society and Culture- and a Tuesday GT Business edition focused on Business, Economics and Law.

Distributed throughout the Republic of Georgia, it boasts international reach through its website (www.georgiatoday.ge) and social media pages (www.fb.com/georgiatoday).

The GEORGIA TODAY team recognizes that foreign workers, as well as visitors to Georgia, rely almost solely on the English-language press for information on news and current events. Our local and international editorial staff ensure that GEORGIA TODAY provides a sensible balance for its diverse readership, completely free from any kind of influence, be it political, business or organizational. The information offered in the newspaper also attempts to give a voice to the voiceless. The fair, accurate and balanced coverage of events is our main value.

“The most important thing for me, as a founder, is that throughout its 17 years, GEORGIA TODAY has strongly followed the strategy articulated 17 years ago on March 24, 2000, during the launch party of the first newspaper at the Sheraton Metechi Palace Hotel,” says George Sharashidze, Founder and General Manager. “We have made it through difficult times and still face difficulties as a result of economic factors. However, Georgia Today’s team, both editorial and marketing, is much more professional now than it was. The experience we have gained through 17 years of ups and downs has turned into a competitive competence in modern standard media management. Our aim is to become a profitable publishing company providing diversified quality media content in the English language through printed and online products, achieving the largest circulation and visitor rate. We will focus on the professionalism of our employees and strive for improvement, providing even greater value for our readers and advertisers.”

I, as Editor-in-Chief of the GEORGIA TODAY newspapers since November 2014, have seen them transform in both look and quality. When I first came to Georgia ten years ago, I was interviewed by a GT journalist curious as to why another foreigner had come to Georgia. I told her I came for love- not only for my husband, but because I’d also fallen in love with the country and its people. Over time I was again and again asked to join the GT team, yet was always unable due to other commitments. Now I’m glad I finally did. There’s nothing better than being a part of a project and seeing it bloom; and hearing people say “Good job, well done!” All thanks to the brilliant team that provides the stories, attends the events and arranges those exclusive interviews. It’s not easy being a journalist in Georgia. The training is limited and a journalist often has to learn on the job using their wits, fearlessness and nose for a story. We at GT like to give new and young journalists the chance to learn, even as our “old staffers” continue to develop and thrive.

This is not the end of the GT journey, as we expand our reach into the digital and the educational. It is with pride that I congratulate all those who work and have worked for GEORGIA TODAY on this 17th anniversary. We promise never to stop seeking to improve, never to stop listening to our readers, and to keep our strength as the leading English language newspaper found on the desks of those who can make the world a better place.

Katie Ruth Davies