Another Fake Story by Kremlin-Linked Turkish Journalist

Turkish propagandist Okay Deprem on April 28 published yet another article targeting Armenia, this time claiming that Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had “sold Public Television to Turkey.”

In an article published on the Turkish tabloid-style website dikgazete{.}com, Deprem claimed, citing unnamed “high-level sources,” that a 100 percent stake in Armenia’s Public Television had allegedly been sold to the Turkish media conglomerate Demiroren TV Holding.

FIP.am has previously examined Deprem’s activities and his links to the Kremlin. He regularly publishes material concerning Armenia, often drawing on sensitive and emotional topics, including issues related to war and its consequences.

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Starting on the morning of April 29, the claim was amplified in a coordinated manner by multiple X accounts—at first glance appearing to be bot accounts (1, 2, 3). These users circulated AI-generated videos based on the article, alleging that management of Armenia’s Public Television would be transferred to a Turkish company immediately after the June elections.

Screenshots from  X accounts

Another Turkish media outlet also shared the same video from one of these X accounts.

As with Deprem’s previous fake articles targeting Armenia (1, 2, 3), no evidence was presented to support the claims. Moreover, no open, credible, or official sources confirm the allegation.

At the same time, Armenia’s Law on Television and Radio (Chapter 4) defines Public Television as a public, non-commercial broadcaster operating under a special state-mandated status. Its operation is regulated by law.

Under Armenian legislation, Public Television is not private property but an institution operating on behalf of the public, and therefore cannot be privatized or sold. The law also explicitly guarantees state funding for the broadcaster.

Notably, no legislative amendments concerning the broadcaster’s operations, financing, or ownership structure are currently under consideration.

Thus, Deprem’s latest “sensational” story is false and was circulated through a coordinated bot campaign across multiple X accounts.

This disinformation campaign (FIMI) against Armenia bears similarities to operations associated with Storm-1516 (1, 2, 3, 4),, which have relied on fake social media accounts, AI-generated deepfake videos, and other manipulation tactics.

Nane Manasyan