Before the Weapons Sound: Media Power in Conflict

Abstract

This paper analyses the process of media involvement in the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict and its implications. There is a prevailing argument that disinformation holds greater power than tanks. This premise serves as the foundational point of departure for the present study — to examine the role of media in conflict coverage and to investigate how disinformation is capable of surpassing the force of a tank. The research led us to the origins of the Georgian-Abkhazian conflict; it is precisely these issues that are foregrounded, analysed, and interpreted throughout the paper.