Liana Aghajanian

Liana Aghajanian is a journalist who has written for EurasiaNet, Los Angeles Times, LA Weekly, New America Media and Spot.us, a non-profit project for the “Center for Media Change,” funded by the Knight Foundation.

Living in the South Caucasus for the next few months, she has extensively covered immigrant communities while based in Los Angeles.

She is founder of Ianyan Magazine, an indepednent online publication with focus on the South Caucasus and occasionally the greater Middle East, where she reported on human rights issues and Armenian, Azeri and Turkish relations, receiving recognition from Amnesty International and local media in Armenia, as well as Global Voices.

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Latest posts by Liana Aghajanian

Armenia: Students Pen Letter to Hungarian Prime Minister

  5 September 2012

The blog, An Armenian Journalist Notes, posts about a letter from a collective group of Armenian students addressing their frustration and disappointment about recent events involving the extradition of Ramil Safarov, an Azerbaijani military officer serving a life sentence for killing Armenian military officer Gurgen Margaryan in 2004 while both...

Chessmaster Gary Kasparov's Arrest During Pussy Riot Trial

  24 August 2012

Perhaps the most surprising thing to emerge out of the media saturated Pussy Riot trials other than the trial itself, was the attendance and subsequent arrest of the former Chessmaster of Caucasian descent, Gary Kasparov, at the reading of the verdict on August 17, which saw the three women accused of illegally performing a "punk prayer" in a church receive a two year prison term.

Azerbaijan: An Alternative Energy Partner for Europe?

  22 August 2012

Baku Views, a blog on economic commentary and opinion from Azerbaijan reflects on a recent NY Times column by Paul Krugman on Europe's dependence on Russian energy, noting that with its gas pipelines projects, Azerbaijan could be an alternative, reliable energy partner. In its opening notes, the blog also compares...

Georgia: Ancient Fortress Discovered in Tbilisi

  21 August 2012

During construction to one of Tbilisi's main streets, parts of a 5th century fortress used to defend the city were unearthed. The Young Georgians has a series of photos of the remarkable discovery, which appears on Georgian cartographer Vakkshuti's map of the capital from 1735.    

Armenia: Reflections on National Psyche

  19 August 2012

Life in the Caucasus, a blog by Peace Corps volunteer John, posts reflections on Armenia as his service comes to an end after two years. The blog summarizes a few key points and opinions on how Armenia's potential is often clouded by the country acting as its own worst enemy,...

The South Caucasus at the 2012 Olympics

  18 August 2012

This post is part of our special coverage of the London 2012 Olympics.   The three South Caucasus countries have been participating  independently in the Olympics since 1996, and they each followed up their records in Beijing this summer in London to walk away with gold, silver and bronze in the...

Armenia: Newfound Support for Domestic Violence Victims

  20 October 2011

Domestic violence has long been a taboo subject in Armenian circles. But when 20-year-old mother Zaruhi Petrosyan was brutally beaten to death by her husband and mother-in-law last October, the case mobilized individuals and organizations in confronting this issue which affects over a quarter of women in Armenia.

Armenia: Corruption

With Armenia ranking 123 out of 178 countries in a 2010 Transparency International report measuring corruption, Life in the Caucasus, a blog maintained by a Peace Corps volunteer in the country, notes that bribery take place at all levels of society and in every sphere of life.