This quote is inscribed next to the statue of George Orwell outside the BBC ‎building in London. As if to remind all members fourth estate that freedom in ‎the media is not always comfortable, pleasant and light. That's how it was and ‎it should be! ‎

‎"This year is a natural continuation of the conversation about truth and ‎salvation in journalism, which we started in 2021, in the Rila Monastery, ‎Bulgaria, and in Tel Aviv, Israel last year," Kiril Valchev, director general of ‎BTA, noted in a special interview for Radio Bulgaria, ‎

‎"Actually, I would personally interpret the topic of freedom in the conversation ‎as the right to choose. Freedom is being able to choose. We can even reach the ‎point of absurdity by declaring that you are free to even lie. This is not right, ‎this is reprehensible, but for there to be truth, there must also be lies. The most ‎dangerous thing in the modern world is for someone to say what is true ‎without any choice. Without the possibility to hear the other side, to hear the ‎wrongdoer as well. And in fact, the great role of the media is first to ensure the ‎presence of all the variety of facts on their territory. And the next big role is to ‎help their audience to find their way, to understand what is the truth and what ‎is a lie," says Valchev. ‎

In the course of four days, until June 4, journalists from 33 countries, ‎including representatives of 40 Bulgarian media from 16 countries, will ‎participate in the celebrations of the Rose Festival in Kazanlak, which will ‎mark its 120-year-long history. 

‎"If there are indisputable things in Bulgaria, it is the symbol of the rose. This ‎holiday, along with May 24, is one of the most radiant of Bulgarian holidays. ‎BTA bears great responsibility for the presentation of Bulgarians as a ‎community. For the second year now, we have a specialized column "BG ‎world" with information and news about the life of Bulgaria outside its ‎borders. And this is another meaning of the meeting – the gathering together of ‎the partners in this task of establishing a community. Both BTA and you, ‎Radio Bulgaria, are trying to gather all this variety of Bulgarians around the ‎world, connecting them with the homeland, but also with each other. 

In ‎addition to 28 Bulgarian media from abroad, six of which participate online, 13 of ‎the largest media groups in the country will participate, including BNR, ‎Valchev specifies. Representatives of the Union of Bulgarian Journalists, the ‎Union of Bulgarian National Electronic Media and the Union of Publishers in ‎Bulgaria, as well as the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communications of ‎Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski". 12 reporters of BTA's partner ‎agencies from neighboring countries, including Albania, Greece and Turkey, ‎have also arrived in Bulgaria. We will have guests from the largest news agency ‎in Africa - the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), from the Kingdom of Saudi ‎Arabia, the United Arab Emirates UAE, from Israel," Kiril Valchev told Radio ‎Bulgaria.‎

‎‎Within the framework of the meeting, BTA is to sign a contract for cooperation ‎and exchange of news with the heads of six new international news agencies, ‎including the largest Spanish-language agency EFE. They will commit to ‎publish one piece of news from Bulgaria every day, according to their interests ‎and needs of their audience, Valchev specifies. ‎

‎“The program of the media meeting includes three major discussions. "One ‎will be about the freedom of choice of journalists, the second about the ‎freedom of choice of the audience, with the participation of Filli Ladgman, ‎executive director of the Bulgarian section of SBS in Australia, as an example ‎of how in a democratic country, one community is deprived of a program in its ‎native language," says the general director of BTA.‎

‎"And the third discussion will be how the holidays should be present in the ‎daily life. Today's media are doing well with the news, but they fail to tell ‎about people's holidays. The whole idea of the theme of freedom is provoked ‎by the fact that the holidays break the shackles of our everyday life, the ‎restrictions that life imposes on us. When they celebrate, people become ‎different, better, happier and make every place the most beautiful in the world ‎for a certain time - the journalist is convinced. ‎‎

And a holiday is not only a specific date in the calendar. A Bulgarian holiday ‎in recent weeks is the success of the novel "Time Shelter" by Georgi ‎Gospodinov, the medals of the Bulgarian rhythmic gymnasts, the participation ‎of violinist Vasko Vassilev as concertmaster of the special orchestra for the ‎coronation of King Charles III, the announcement of Stoyan Karaivanov as the ‎Best bandoneonist in the world. We are all this variety of "holidays" ‎and it is ‎important that these topics are more and more represented in the media. ‎Especially in the Bulgarian media outside the country, which are noticeably ‎decreasing, notes Kiril Valchev. ‎

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"This trend has intensified during the pandemic. Today, we can count about ‎‎50, and about half of them are truly viable," says BTA director.‎

‎“Bulgaria is a successful country that has traveled a long way in a short time, ‎which led us to be part of the EU and to be among the most advanced ‎countries in the world. And I wish there was hope that more and more ‎Bulgarians would see the point of returning back. Bulgaria is a free country! ‎Many more people today understand that the most valuable thing in life is not ‎possessions, but the feeling of community, of being in your right place. This ‎feeling of warmth and mutual connection is present precisely at our media ‎meetings.”‎

‎And in conclusion, as if as a wish to himself, Kiril Valchev admits that he ‎wishes more and more often that the annual World Meeting of the Bulgarian ‎Media, organized by the institution he leads, would be held at home - in ‎Bulgaria.‎

Photos: BTA, BNR