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Bloggers: “Larry, what happened to Simonyan? – She deceived”

Margarita Simonyan and Larry King can’t decide whether the TV presenter works forRussiaToday or simply sold the rights to broadcast his shows. While Russian bloggers are incriminating the editor-in-chiefRT is a deception, foreign media state: the famous TV presenter was recruited by Russian propagandists.

Today, May 31, on your personal page on Facebook Larry King denied information about the launch of a new TV show on the RussiaToday channel. According to the TV presenter, the RT channel did not hire him as an employee, but only acquired a license to broadcast the Larry King Now show.

"My show has been and will continue to be produced by Ora-TV, which I co-founded," King wrote. "And I will continue to ask my own questions. RT will carry the show without any editorial interference." Interestingly, in the same Facebook post, Larry King mentioned TV channels from other countries that also purchase a license to broadcast his programs.

In RT studios for RT

Answer RussiaToday editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan followed immediately.

Simonyan considered that the TV presenter only refuted the information that he now works on the staff of RT. “Of course, we did not hire Larry King as a staff member. We did not issue a quota for him, did not obtain a work permit for him, and are not his tax agent,” said the editor-in-chief. “This is how television works in general. Few of our talk show hosts are ours.” employee. Usually this is an agreement with the production, which in turn has an agreement with the presenter."

Previously, the editor-in-chief of Russia Today unequivocally hinted, that Larry King is the new presenter of RT: “This is from the category of “could I, a barefoot girl, have guessed 20 years ago...” In general, Larry King now works for us.”

Simonyan continues to insist that Larry King not only sold the rights to broadcast the almost year-old show Larry King Now, but is also creating an exclusive program specifically for Russia Today.

"Colleagues, what are you talking about? - writes Margarita on her Twitter, addressing other journalists. - King denied media reports that we HIRE HIM ON THE STAFF. He will exclusively produce the new show for us, as was said.” And he refers to a press release from Ora-TV, which produces King’s TV show.

“Starting in June, Larry King Now will be broadcast on RT, and in addition, RT will air Politics with Larry King,” the release said. “The new program is also created by King and produced by Ora-TV. RT will be the exclusive broadcaster in America for "both programs, which will be available on Hulu.com and Ora.tv, as well as rt.com. The programs will be recorded at RT's Washington studio, DC studio and Ora-TV studio in Los Angeles."

Judging by this, Larry King is going to broadcast his shows on Russia Today, but not create unique content for the channel. However, Simonyan claims that Politics with Larry King will be produced exclusively in RT studios for RT (despite the production of the program by Ora-TV stated in the release). The editor-in-chief of RussiaToday even threatens to sue those who say otherwise. In particular, to the presenter of Channel One Dmitry Borisov, who had the imprudence to write on Twitter: “In fact, Russia Today will broadcast the same King shows that go online on Hulu.com and Ora.TV.”

Demagogic talent

While everyone is waiting for clarifications from the legend of American television, Margarita Simonyan was reminded of everything - from the Kremlin’s financing of her TV channel to the story of the beaver, which the editor-in-chief at one time had the imprudence to feast on.

However, Margarita herself does not seem particularly bothered by the criticism. She sure, that it’s a matter of banal envy: “I enjoy the skeptical grins, whispers and matches, behind which it so triumphantly clearly shines - eternal, insatiable envy.”

The main complaint against Simonyan is the difference between the settings “Larry King works for Russia Today” and “Russia Today bought a license to broadcast Larry King’s show.” Editor-in-Chief of Inosmi.ru Alexey Kovalev ironizes on this matter: “Yeah, First will put “Pirates of the Caribbean” on air, and Ernst will say, “Johnny Depp works for us now.” echoes journalist Ivan Davydov: “As stated by Homer Simpson, an employee of the 2×2 TV channel...”.

Echo of Moscow journalist Alexander Plyushchev called Simonyan “a great demagogic talent”: “As I suspected, they bought not Larry King, but his program. It’s not that I didn’t believe that Larry King couldn’t go to work on a funny punk TV, "how RT is perceived in America by those who have ever seen it. But even purely technically, it seemed somehow impracticable. It’s just that Margarita Simonyan, undoubtedly a great demagogic talent, competently “sold” her acquisition to you, and you fell for it."

Those who fell for it have already managed beat many times Vladimir Putin’s famous answer to the question of what happened to the Kursk submarine: “Larry, what happened to Margarita? - She lied.”

Simonyan’s colleague on the NTV program “Iron Ladies” Tina Kandelaki spoke on the side of Russia Today. Parrying the ill-wishers of the editor-in-chief of Russia Today, she used the well-known rhetorical device of “get it first.”

“How we hate other people’s success,” writes the “iron lady.” “@M_Simonyan has agreed with King. He will work for RT. For RT. With RT. With Margot personally. Discussing this topic with such bile is simply freezing. Why does everyone think themselves so smart? And @M_Simonyan is a fool, she wanted to deceive everyone, it didn’t work out. But everyone found out and let’s bully. It’s disgusting. @M_Simonyan built a channel from scratch that was nominated for an Emmy. What did you do? Think and tell yourself the truth. Wrestlers for truth and justice."

To this remark immediately reacted Alexei Navalny, recalling Russia Today budget funding: “They really think everyone is an idiot. Propaganda squalor for 4 billion budget rubles a year is called “the channel itself created.” Same point of view adheres to owner of Igor Sechin's parody Twitter: "Margarita Simonyan built a channel that no one needs, which costs the budget 4 billion rubles a year. What have you achieved?"

To him objected Ksenia Sobchak: “I read the crap about RT. Let’s learn to be objective. They really gave a lot of money there, BUT - Simonyan made a professional channel - that’s also true.”

TV presenter Sergei Minaev called Simonyan to end the meaningless polemic: “King is on RT. The viewer doesn’t care whether he is on staff, under a contract, or even an individual entrepreneur King.”

His colleague Vladimir Solovyov adheres to the same point of view - King’s program will be broadcast on RT, and “everything else is lyrics.” Judging by their rhetoric, Simonyan’s colleagues do not refute the fact that she slightly embellished the reality.

Photographer and blogger Rustem Adagamov on the page in Facebook understood Larry King’s explanations in his own way: “In the story with RussiaToday, apparently, a defensive reflex worked - the seasoned wolf realized where he was being included for everyone’s amusement and decided not to gloss over it at all. Although, for two days the European media and PR agencies laughed from the heart."

The answer is simple - money

The foreign media are not exactly laughing their hearts out about this, but are rather perplexed. The Financial Times writes that the contract with Larry King is a significant event for the Russian TV channel. "Russia Today is fighting to be seen as a 24-hour news channel, but is still perceived by many as the mouthpiece of the Kremlin," the publication notes. “Mr. King will strengthen the network's uneven reputation, which has been criticized for outlandish statements (such as the Boston bombing being a US intelligence operation) and a skewed view of the channel toward Russia's foreign policy position,” said journalist Charles Clover.

The Christian Science Monitor noted that RT has changed its concept significantly over the years: "Since its establishment by the Kremlin in 2005, RT has expanded its activities far beyond its original plan to 'correct misconceptions' about Russia around the world and moved toward a more aggressive one." "alternative" coverage of politics in the US, Britain and other Western countries, writes Fred Ware.

According to the observer, King's program will help Russia Today attract additional attention to the channel: “It is not entirely clear how the completely new RT program “Politics with Larry King” will differ, but most experts believe that it will be well funded. The calculation is made that to show the growing weight and influence of RT in the global media environment."

Forbes expert also speaks about good financing. “Even more strange to me is the outrage with which many Russian liberals are tweeting about this,” writes Mark Adomanis. “They are seething with anger, asking how Larry King will “justify” his cooperation with the Putin regime, and why he "humiliated" while speaking on RT. Well, the answer is very simple: money. I don't understand how anyone can not understand this, and why we have to re-teach this simple lesson every time some third-rate celebrity goes to Moscow and is friends with Vladimir Putin. After all, the overwhelming majority of celebrities are interested primarily not in art, but in money.”

Did Larry King understand who he was working for?

Foreign Policy reacted much harsher to the news. The related article is entitled: "Hey Larry King, have you even watched Russia Today?" "One wonders," writes journalist Dayna Stuster, "has Larry King figured out who he's working for? This is Russia Today, the Kremlin's English-language channel. It's propaganda with a thin veil. RT is known for disseminating Russian government policies with an unabashed zeal that would make Fox News blush or MSNBC."

“Well, maybe King knows who he’s working for. The New York Times notes that Larry King is a fan of Russian President Vladimir Putin,” writes Foreign Policy. “But such a move still seems strange for someone who considers himself a real journalist ". The publication invites King to familiarize himself with a selection of Russia Today television programs that he should have seen before signing the contract.

The Washington Times went the furthest - they published a parody column by Larry King "for the Kremlin propaganda channel RT."

“These girls from Pussy Riot need to force themselves and eat: just skin and bones... - journalist Sonny Bunch parodies King. - Syrian rebels are a disaster, someone help Assad... Have you seen Putin riding a bear ? This man has tamed nature... Look, we all have our problems, but journalists should understand when to keep their mouths shut?... I just don’t understand why Viktor Yushchenko adds dioxin to his tea... It seems to me that Europe needs natural gas more missile defense... But really, what is propaganda?"

Anastasia Frolova

One day Tigran Keosayan wrote to Margarita Simonyan on Facebook: “Hello, Margarita! This is Tigran Keosayan. I have long liked you as a journalist and fellow tribesman. Now I was driving in the car and listening to how you were being bullied on the radio, I couldn’t stand it, I decided to support and write.”

Margarita Simonyan at first did not believe that it was really Keosayan. She saw him on TV in a cooking show where he was cooking scrambled eggs and tomatoes. Margarita answered him, exchanged phone numbers, met, had lunch. Apparently, we had lunch so deliciously that we wanted to have more lunch. Yes, and have dinner. Gradually we acquired common themes, interests, friends, and some projects.

« And suddenly it turned out that it’s impossible to live without each other - that you need to see each other every day, correspond every minute, hold hands even when you’re not around"recalls Simonyan.

« In general, all the most beautiful things in my life literally fall from the sky. But what I work on long and hard either doesn’t happen at all, or happens when it’s no longer necessary.", the journalist adds. Her career - the position of editor-in-chief of an international television channel and the country's main news agency - also developed unexpectedly. She never aspired to become a big boss, quite the contrary. I have always wanted to write books, from childhood, as long as I can remember.

Tigran Keosayan taught Margarita to write scripts. Now, in traffic jams and at night, she writes scripts for films and TV series - sometimes under her own name, sometimes under a pseudonym. This is how Simonyan relaxes. " Not to mention the fact that it pays very well - definitely more than my salary at Russia Today", clarifies Keosayan's chosen one.

She writes not only for Tigran. Together they made three TV series and just made a movie. Their comedy “The Sea. Mountains. Expanded clay" was successfully broadcast on Channel One. This December on NTV there will be a premiere of the psychological thriller “Actress”, another work that they created together with Tigran and Alena Khmelnitskaya.

Margarita wrote the script, Tigran directed, and Alena played one of the main female roles. The whole group watched their trio with caution and admiration - how people manage to maintain good relationships.

Margarita was born in Krasnodar, which in the eighties was an abandoned province. The family lived between the station and the market; they had a shack without any amenities. " My parents are purebred Armenians, but our family is absolutely Russian. Father was born and raised in Sverdlovsk, and mother in Sochi"says Simonyan. Most of her relatives still live in Adler.

Simonyan never dreamed of television. She was going to write beautiful articles for various magazines. In 1998, Margarita graduated from her first year, and she published a collection of poems; the Krasnodar television company also took her on as an internship. Leaving for Chechnya to the front line in the bloody and crazy December 1999, when Grozny was just being surrounded, for the first time in her life Simonyan deceived her parents.

After Chechnya, Margarita was noticed in Moscow. She became a freelance correspondent for several federal television channels. Her father bought her a shabby Oka, which was already ten years old, and he and the operator drove around in this car all over the south of Russia, Crimea, Abkhazia, Kalmykia and Ossetia, getting their reports.

In her third year, when Simonyan was not yet twenty-one years old, the RTR channel - now called “Russia” - entrusted her with heading its news desk. " I was twenty-two when Dobrodeev, the general director of the Rossiya TV channel, called and asked: “Choose, will you go to New York or Moscow?” Of course, I chose Moscow. I immediately got into the presidential pool - it was a real “dream come true”"recalls Simonyan.

At twenty-five, Margarita was appointed editor-in-chief of Russia Today, which did not exist at that time: she had to launch the first Russian international 24-hour news channel in English from scratch. She celebrated her first New Year in this capacity at work.

Simonyan, in general, from her early youth actually lived only by work. She never wanted to get married; she put off thoughts about children until after she was thirty. " When romances happened, I immediately honestly told my boyfriend that it wasn’t serious and most likely not for long - I just didn’t have time", the journalist recalls.

« It seemed to me that a married woman was an unhappy and downtrodden creature: she was “blessed” with a white veil so that she could clean, wash, cook and endure her husband’s infidelities. However, by thirty I already had a long and completely family relationship - with a common life, a ficus tree and plans for the future, but I had no plans to get married even then", adds Margarita.

Then a tsunami named Keosayan burst into her “understandable life.” " Tigran and I tried many times to stop everything - no one wanted to hurt loved ones. But it didn't work out. The first time we separated “forever” was for a whole day, the last time was for twenty minutes." says Margarita.

Simonyan lived in a small cozy house, bought with a mortgage, in a wonderful village, which had only one drawback - it was located sixty-three kilometers from the Moscow Ring Road. " When Tigran arrived for the first time, he asked why I didn’t have curtains. Margarita remembers. - She answered: “Because I haven’t saved up for the ones I want yet.”" Keosayan was shocked. In his mind, the head of a major international media outlet could not have such problems. He moved to live with her in this house without curtains.

« Why do you say that you live near Moscow? You live near Volokolamsk! - Tigran joked, making his way to Margarita’s house in his luxurious Maserati. He, of course, left the mansion in Barvikha to Alena and their common children. Having already moved to Simonyan, he stopped there every morning before work to have breakfast with his youngest daughter Ksyusha, and only then went to Mosfilm. Margarita categorically supported this. She even insisted if he was tired and wanted to sleep longer.

Tigran stopped going to Barvikha every morning only when Alena had a new common-law husband, Sasha. So as not to create awkwardness. Ksyusha spends weekends with them; she is friends with Margarita’s children. Tigran took only his father's portraits and books from his house. And after the divorce, Alena remains a faithful friend and family member, and a loving father to his daughters.

« When I found out that I was pregnant, I was in shock and cried for three months. Motherhood happened despite precautions, but there was an almost one hundred percent threat of miscarriage. The doctors said: “If you want to carry it out, go to bed for conservation, we will inject hormones.”"says Simonyan.

Margarita decided that she would not fight either for or against her pregnancy: as God willed, so it would happen. As a result, Maryasha settled down. Five months after her first birth, Simonyan became pregnant with Bagrat. This time I wasn’t worried, I was happy. " Pregnancy was very easy for me, both times I felt better than when I was not pregnant: I slept little, worked hard and vigorously, not a day of toxicosis, gave birth the first time in two and a half hours, the second in one and a half hours. However, motherhood is still the hardest thing I've ever done.", admitted Margarita.

I spent a month on maternity leave with Maryasha Simonyan, but still sorted everything out by phone and mail. I didn’t sit with Bagrat at all. After leaving the maternity hospital, the journalist took her son home and went to work - she was just undergoing an audit by the Accounts Chamber.

In general, the famous journalist is also an anxious mother, but she tries not to show this to her children. Several times a day he always calls his grandmothers at home. Although he knows his children’s schedule every minute, and theirs is spartan: swimming, languages, yoga, drawing by the hour, Maryasha has dancing, Bagrat has Thai boxing. And their diet is spartan, they still haven’t tried sweets and cakes, so they are absolutely indifferent to sweets and happily nibble on celery. Any cakes can be on the table - children are not drawn to them because they do not perceive them as food, rather as decoration. They eat a lot of fruits and vegetables, cereals, meat, and seafood.

Tigran is a much stricter parent than Margarita. Raises children immediately as adults, especially her only son. And he is three years old, he still doesn’t understand when dad says that “I need to apologize for throwing an apple on the floor,” he looks at dad with surprised eyes and smiles. However, Tigran, in Margarita’s opinion, is also strict with his daughters. But he also fools around with them, sings funny songs that he makes up himself, and tells tall tales.

Simonyan says that she is a fan of preschool education and got it from Tatyana Yumasheva, Yeltsin’s daughter. Maryasha and Bagrat speak five languages: Russian, Armenian, English, French and Chinese. Teachers who are native speakers come to them every day. For children it's just a game, they don't even know that they are learning. They sculpt, draw, walk, sing, watch cartoons - it’s just that all this happens in different languages.

« I wouldn't want my children to study abroad. For selfish reasons. They will already master the languages ​​by first grade, but I am not ready to live with them in different countries so that they grow up as carriers of a culture that is foreign to me. I am not a person of the world, I am very attached to my native places and I want my children to be nearby too. We have seen many families where parents are perplexed as to why their child grew up strange, incomprehensible, some kind of arrogant English aristocrat or an equally arrogant Swiss socialist. And the heir was sent to London to college at the age of twelve - how should he grow up?", says Margarita.

Tigran did not object to his eldest daughter when she wanted to study at the Tisch School of the Arts at New York University, but he was terribly worried all these years. By the end, he and Alena were already very angry with themselves for having sent their daughter to the other side of the world with their own hands. Luckily for them, she didn’t stay there. I received my diploma and returned. Now the smart and beautiful Sasha works with her father, she was the second director on his new film, the plot of which unfolds against the backdrop of the construction of the Crimean Bridge.

The summer before last, at Ksyusha’s birthday—she was turning six—Margarita met Alena. A few days before the holiday, Tigran said: “ Alena invites us to come all together. -Of course, take the children and go with them. - You did not understand. She wants to see you too».
Margarita thought that Tigran, in his directorial absent-mindedness, had misunderstood something. I asked him for Alenin’s number and wrote to her: “ Alena, hello! Tigran said that you are waiting for us all together. This is true? I don’t want to put anyone in an awkward position, especially at a children’s party" Alena replied: “ C'mon! Come! There won't be any problems. Let's have great fun».

About forty guests gathered. It was just wonderful. Margarita and Alena both took a glass when the children had already been taken away and sat together until the morning. Tigran could not stand it, fell asleep on the lawn, periodically woke up and whined: “ Girls, maybe that's enough? Oh please! I want to go home!»

At the holiday, Margarita and Alena took a photo together and posted it on the Internet with the caption “High relationship.” " She is charming, very kind, smart, open - not to mention a phenomenal beauty. We have nothing to share: Alena is happy, I am happy, Tigran is happy. And thank God", Margarita admits.

Margarita and Tigran do not hang out and rarely go to premieres or events. And they hardly go to visit - they receive friends at home. On Sundays they often serve tables of fifteen courses, Margarita loves it very much. Of course, both mothers and their au pair help her. Maryasha is already helping to cook too. I learned how to cut cucumbers with a small child’s knife, and I’m terribly proud of it.

« Looking at my children, I am convinced that people are born with a certain set of traits. Maryana is as ambitious as I was. At four years old, she cries for half a day if she fails to read a word or recite a poem by heart. But this doesn’t bother my three-year-old son at all. They sit down at the table, Maryasha shouts: “I am the first, because I was born first!” - Okay, I'm second.", Bagrat smiles.

On the first of January, Keosayan and Simonyan always have an “open door”. All night long, Margarita and her mother and mother-in-law cook this famous Armenian anti-hangover dish from boiled beef hooves. To be honest, the khash mostly cooks itself, but they keep an eye on it. All friends know that they can come to them without special invitation, starting at one o'clock in the afternoon. This is how it was in the house of Margarita’s parents, this is how it was in the house of Tigran’s parents, and now this is how it is with them.

Tigran, of course, pampers his wife, accustoming her to expensive things and five-star hotels. When they met, Margarita was already over thirty, she had long been a big boss with a good salary, but everything was scattered into mortgages, loans, and numerous relatives.

« I will never forget his first gift. I liked a bag from a well-known brand, not prohibitively expensive, but still wastefully expensive for me. Passing by the boutique, I admired her in the window. One day Tigran caught my eye: “Do you like this bag?”", says the journalist.

Tigran bought it on the sly and gave it to his wife. " So, like a child, I slept with her for several days - I laid her on the pillow, I could not take my eyes off her. I still wear it", recalls Margarita.

Keosayan and Simonyan have not yet registered their relationship; they simply don’t get around to it. " We were recently joking about this topic at home Margarita tells the “Caravan of Stories” - We decided that we would probably get married when the children grew up, so that we could sit down at a common table with our parents, drink homemade wine from the grapes planted by my grandfather, eat dolma according to Tigran’s mother’s recipe and say: “What great fellows you are, ancestors, Once upon a time we decided on all this!»

To date, Margarita Simonyan has managed to achieve success in her work biography and personal life. She gave birth to two children, received a number of government awards, and was recognized as one of the most influential women in Russia and the world. And this is not a complete list of the achievements of the 38-year-old television journalist, whose childhood was harsh.

Biography

Margarita was born on April 6, 1980. She characterizes the region of Krasnodar, where the future journalist spent her childhood, as a ghetto. The living conditions in the old house where the family lived until 1990 were simply terrible. The salary of the father, a polytechnic graduate who had to repair refrigerators, and the mother’s part-time work provided the family with a half-starved existence, but the parents tried to give their daughters a good education.

The eldest, Margarita, turned out to be gifted, and the desire to escape from poverty only gave her strength. She learned to read in kindergarten and was one of the best students at a school with advanced study of English.

Under an exchange program for high school students, Margarita went to the USA, where she graduated from high school, but returned to Russia to receive higher education. She studied journalism in her native Krasnodar, and studied television skills at the capital's Pozner school. Her professional career also began in Kuban.

Margarita Simonyan and Tatyana Navka

A television

The first stage of Margarita Simonyan’s work biography was the work of a correspondent for the Krasnodar TV and Radio Broadcasting Company; after some time, the young journalist was entrusted with editing the information programs of this company. After her appointment to the VGTRK media holding, Margarita moved to Rostov-on-Don.

At the turn of the millennium, the girl prepared a number of military reports on the Chechen conflict, and in 2001 she talked about the events in the Kodori Gorge. The third hot spot in her career as a war reporter was Beslan, where hostages were taken in 2004. By that time, Margarita was already a special correspondent for Vesti, working in Moscow.

Margarita in the studio of radio "Echo of Moscow"

At the time of the founding of the English-language television channel RT (Russia Today), Margarita was only 25. The creators of the channel did not want to trust it to a person accustomed to the format of Soviet news; a fundamentally new approach was needed. They considered the best candidate for the post of editor-in-chief to be a young, talented journalist who had already received a number of professional and state awards.

Now Margarita Simonovna combines this position with the responsibilities of the editor-in-chief of MIA Rossiya Segodnya and its subsidiary agency Sputnik.

The journalist is the editor-in-chief of the RT television channel.

In 2011-13, Margarita acted as a presenter:

• analytical news program “What’s happening?”;
• political talk show "Iron Ladies".

Both television programs were not to the liking of television reviewers. In their opinion, the program “What’s going on?” Simonyan carried on as in Soviet times, resorting to the same style of propaganda. And for the show “Iron Ladies,” they and Tina Kandelaki, who was the co-host, were called “kitchen gossips.”

Margarita Simonyan and Tina Kandelaki

In addition to working on TV, Margarita starred in one feature film and one documentary, wrote books and scripts. For Margarita Simonyan, the cinematic turn of her biography turned out to be closely connected with her personal life, because films based on both of her scripts were directed by Tigran Keosayan.

Personal life

At the age of 12, Margarita categorically told her parents that she was not going to get married. The fate of a downtrodden, powerless housewife, exhausted by everyday chores, did not appeal to her. Immediately after school, the ambitious girl focused on building a career; she did not have enough time for her personal life. Starting a family was not part of her plans, although she periodically began short-term romances without obligations.

The longest and most serious relationship connected her with her colleague Andrei Blagodyrenko. In an interview in 2012, Margarita called Andrei her common-law husband and emphasized that they had been together for 6 years.

Margarita often appeared in Tigran’s company, but no one suspected their connection

When Margarita Simonyan became a mother twice, fans interested in the details of her biography and personal life were surprised to learn that the father of both of the journalist’s children was Tigran Keosayan.

Photos of them together appeared on the Internet several times, but many thought that the journalist and director had only a professional relationship.

In 2012, Tigran gave Margarita a small role in his film “Three Comrades,” and in 2013 he directed the first film based on her script. The director was offended by criticism of a pretty woman of Armenian descent, and he wrote to her on Facebook with words of support. The correspondence was followed by a personal meeting, and they soon became very close.

Margarita and Tigran Keosayan's ex-wife Alena Khmelnitskaya

Margarita's first pregnancy turned out to be unplanned, there was a threat of miscarriage, and the woman decided to rely on fate. In August 2013, her daughter Maryana was born, and a little over a year later, a son, who was named Bagrat. Margarita is not yet going to formalize the relationship with their father, although he has already divorced his first wife, Alena Khmelnitskaya.

Margarita Simonyan has a blog on LiveJournal and a page on Facebook, but she practically does not post her own photos there and does not share biographical facts or events from her personal life. More interesting information can be gleaned from interviews and media publications:

• Margarita received her first job by accident, thanks to a collection of poems published at the age of 18. Local television decided to film a story about the young poetess, and she admitted that she dreams of working on TV and received an invitation to an internship;
• on the eve of the Olympics, Margarita, with the support of her husband, opened a restaurant near her grandmother’s house in Sochi, now it has fallen into disrepair due to its unfortunate location;
• the children of Margarita and Tigram already speak five languages;
• Margarita developed friendly relations with Tigran’s first wife. Khmelnitskaya starred in the film “Actress”, directed by Keosayan and scripted by Simonyan.

Margarita does not publish photos of her children

Margarita Simonyan now

Now Margarita Simonyan continues to lead RT and Russia Today, is a member of the public council under the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs, and with the help of her common-law husband and grandmothers is raising children. During the 2018 presidential elections, she was Putin's confidant.

Margarita Simonyan is part of a team of people close to Putin

One of the latest news is related to Margarita’s April post on Facebook. She called an ambulance to the sick children and shared her impressions of the visit to the doctors’ house: these are poor people in front of whom you feel involuntary shame for your wealth. The phrase “It’s as if I stole it all” spread across the Internet and caused a wave of ironic comments, since Simonyan’s jingoistic propaganda activities, which are financed from the budget, are considered by many to be the same as theft.

Speech by Margarita Simonyan in the Federation Council

Fresh posts by the journalist regularly appear on LiveJournal, which anyone can read.

Today it is not surprising that many star husbands leave their families and continue their lives with young wives. This list can include many famous men. These are Oleg Tabakov, Sergei Bezrukov, Valery Meladze, as well as Tigran Keosayan, who, after a twenty-year marriage with Alena Khmelnitskaya, went to Margarita Simonyan. The couple even had children: Maryana and Bagrat. What motivates men to do such things? Are males looking for new females or is it love? Let's try to understand our article: Tigran Keosayan and Margarita Simonyan, children, photos, details of biography and secret romance.

Margarita Simonyan: biography

Margarita Simonyan is a native of Krasnodar, born in 1980. The girl was born and raised in a poor family. Her father earned food by repairing refrigerators, and her mother traded at the market. Unfavorable living conditions motivated the girl to achieve great success in life. So, already in kindergarten, she was the first to learn to read, and later she was enrolled in a school with a focus on studying foreign languages, where she was one of the best students. In high school, she won her place on a study abroad exchange and lived and studied in America for several years. At first, Margarita planned to continue her journey in the United States, but still decided to return to Russia and get an education at the Kuban State University at the Faculty of Journalism.

Margarita's career

Margarita began her career with the Krasnodar television and radio channel, where she began working as a correspondent. At the age of 19, she left for Chechnya, where she filmed a report in a war zone. Such a plot brings the girl not only fame, but also several awards for courage.

In 2000, Margarita became the chief editor of the TV channel, and in 2002 she was invited to Moscow as a special journalist for the Vesti television program. Thanks to her talent and professionalism, the girl is included in the presidential pool of journalists. Since 2005, she worked as editor-in-chief of the Russia Today TV channel, and in 2013 she was appointed head of the international news agency Rossiya Segodnya.

Tigran Keosayan: biography

Tigran Keosayan was born in 1966 into a Moscow family strongly connected with the world of cinema. His father is a recognized director, screenwriter and actor, his mother is a famous actress of Armenia, and his older brother connected his life with television. Therefore, from a very young age, Tigran knew exactly who he should be and where to go. But he never entered the University of Cinematography; the reason for this turn of events was an article in Izvestia, in which the journalist presented a colorful story about how a famous director was trying to get his worthless son into the university. But this situation only strengthened Tigran’s desire, and he entered the university’s directing department.

Career

In 1990, Keosayan and Bondarchuk decided to start their creative journey together and were busy making videos for pop stars and commercials. In 1991, the comedy “Joker” was released with Keosayan in the leading role. In the same year, he tried himself as a director of the film “Katka and Shuz”. But the director’s real fame comes from the New Year’s comedy “Poor Sasha,” which, according to TEFI, became the best film of 1997. The director has a lot of famous films and TV series to his credit, as well as participation in various television programs. By the way, from 2009 to 2011, the director hosted the “You and Me” program together with his wife. But soon rumors began to spread that the couple Tigran Keosayan and Margarita Simonyan would soon have children - photos of the pregnant journalist, who had recently appeared more and more often near the director, led to thoughts of a broken marriage.

Tigran Keosayan and Margarita Simonyan

Before his marriage to Margarita Simonyan, the director was married to actress Alena Khmelnitskaya, known for the film “Hearts of Three.” The couple lived for 20 years, two daughters were born in the marriage: Alexandra and Ksenia. For a long time, journalists called Tigran and Alena a strong family, which is very rare for the world of show business. But in 2011, the director increasingly began to appear in public without his wife, and in 2012 he began to be noticed in the company of journalist Margarita Simonyan.

In 2013, one of the most beautiful couples divorced. This news simply shocked the Internet. Rumors about the director’s office romance with the journalist have been circulating for a long time and that Margarita gave birth to a daughter, Maryana, from Keosayan. Many still hoped that such rumors were just machinations of the yellow press, but when Margarita gave birth to a son, Bagrat, in 2014, the director did not deny it and on one of his pages shared the news that he had become a father.

In contact with

Classmates

Russian journalist Margarita Simonyan Simonyan has become editor-in-chief of the Russia Today TV channel (Russia Today) since 2013. When she took up this post, she was only 25 years old. This appointment became the most discussed topic at that time, many wondered why this 25-year-old Armenian girl was entrusted with such a responsible position. How did Margarita Simonovna Simonyan distinguish herself? Despite everything, no incriminating evidence on her person was found. And the passions subsided. Further in the material we will talk about the life path of this interesting woman who managed to make such a successful career.

The future journalist was born in early April 1980, in the southern city of Krasnodar. Margarita has a sister named Alice. After she took the position of general director of the RT television channel in 2013, many began to wonder who Simonyan’s parents were. Margarita Simonovna and her sister lived in rather modest conditions since childhood. Their father worked as a refrigerator repairman, and their mother worked as a flower girl and sold flowers at the market from morning to evening. The money my parents earned was only enough for food. Their house was very old and was located on one of the outskirts of Krasnodar, named after the legendary Russian writer N.V. Gogol. The house was full of rats, there were no basic living conditions: gas, sewerage and running water. Today I can’t even believe that there could have been such terrible living conditions in the Soviet Union. The girls had to live in this nightmare for about 10 years, after which the family was given an apartment. It was life at the “bottom” that pushed Margarita to an irresistible desire to escape from poverty and succeed in life.

Despite the fact that Margarita’s parents did not pay much attention to the development of their children’s intellectual and creative abilities, the girls grew up smart and very diligent. Little Rita was one of the first in her kindergarten group to start reading. The teacher asked her to read fairy tales to her classmates before bed. Later, Margarita Simonovna Simonyan was taken to the 1st grade of specialized school number 36 in the city of Krasnodar. Here they engaged in in-depth study of foreign languages. It turned out that the girl has a great ability for English. She studied excellently and was sent to the Olympiads. When the girl turned 16 years old and was in the 9th grade, an excellent opportunity opened up for her to improve her English knowledge to the proper level. She was sent to study in the United States, in the state of New Hampshire, as part of a student exchange program. She lived in a very friendly and warm family, went to an American school, communicated with peers and learned the peculiarities of life in mysterious America. She still has excellent, one might say “family” relationship with this family. Margarita even thought about staying overseas, but soon realized that she was most comfortable living in her native country.

After graduating from school, it is worth noting, with a medal of honor, Margarita Simonovna Simonyan, whose biography is the topic of this article, entered the Faculty of Journalism of the Kuban State University, at the same time she studied at the V. Posner School of Television Excellence, and also wrote poetry. It turned out that the collection of poems by the 18-year-old Armenian woman aroused interest among the press, and a film crew came to her home to make a report about her. It was during this interview that she mentioned that she wanted to be a journalist. And then she received an offer to work on Krasnodar television.

In December 1999, she went to Chechnya to cover the fighting. At the same time, Margarita decided to feel sorry for her parents and only told them that she was going on another business trip. At the same time, Margarita began filming stories for federal channels. Her fearlessness and professionalism were highly appreciated by the government, and Margarita Simonovna Simonyan was awarded many federal awards. A year later, she became the leading editor of the information portal of the TRK Krasnodar, and in 2000 she was appointed editor-in-chief on the same TV channel. Later, the girl moved to the All-Russian State Television and Radio Broadcasting Channel in the city of Rostov-on-Don. Then Margarita decides to continue her “military” career and goes to Abkhazia, writes reports about the clashes in the Kodori Gorge.

In 2002, Margarita Simonovna Simonyan finally received an invitation from the directorate of the Vesti television program to work as a staff correspondent, of course, moving to the capital. Of course, she happily accepted the offer, and soon she was already part of the presidential pool. In September 2004, a terrible tragedy occurred in North Ossetia, in Beslan. At that time, Margarita was in Minvody. She received instructions from the channel's editorial office and went to the scene of the incident. The entire time the hostages were in the hands of the militants, she stood near the school and went on air every half hour. Sometimes her voice broke due to the sobs choking her. After that, she could not calm down for a long time.

In 2005, the Russia Today TV channel appeared in Moscow. He delivered information in English and was called upon to express the official Russian position regarding various political situations in the world. In the professional sphere, many were perplexed that Margarita Simonyan was appointed editor-in-chief of the channel. Despite this, RIA Novosti presented arguments regarding this appointment. According to them, the head of the service had to be so young that he did not remember what news appeared on Soviet television. She must have new thinking, a modern view of what is happening. In addition, she knew English very well and could objectively assess the flow of information. Subsequently, Margarita also directed the Arabic and Spanish versions of the TV channel.

In 2011, Margarita decided to create a personal news project “What’s happening” on the REN TV channel and be its presenter. The program was broadcast every week, on which M. S. Simonyan discussed the most important events of recent days, which federal channels avoided talking about. Direct participants in these events were invited to the program. After 2 years, a new political show was released on NTV, hosted by Margarita Simonyan and Tina Kandelaki, an Armenian and Georgian. The program was called “Iron Ladies”. But due to some reasons the show was closed.

Since childhood, Margarita dreamed of being a writer. She wrote poetry, and already at the age of 18 she published a collection of poems written by her. Her next book was published in 2010 and was called “To Moscow.” This is a novel about the generation of the nineties, about the problems, difficult destinies of people whose lives coincided with the split of the Soviet Union, about the unfulfilled dreams of young people who in an instant lost their present and future. A year after the release of the novel, Margarita received an award for the best book written by a journalist. Her next work was the story “Train”. She published excerpts from it in the Russian Pioneer magazine; for this magazine she also writes articles on culinary topics.

The journalist does not like to talk about herself. In 2012, in an interview, she said that she and journalist Andrei Blagodyrenko had been living in a civil marriage for 6 years, but regarding the consolidation of official relations and a wedding, she was absolutely not ready for this. In the same year, Margarita went to Sochi, where construction was underway on the Simonyan family restaurant “Zharko!” It was there that she became close to her compatriot, the famous director. Tigran Keosayan and Margarita Simonyan spent more and more time together. And everyone already perceived them as a couple, despite the fact that Tigran continued to be married to actress Alena Khmelnitskaya. A year later, in the summer of 2013, Margarita gave birth to a daughter, who was named Maryana. The next year, she and Tigran had a son, who was named by the Armenian name Bagrat. Today Simonyan Margarita Simonovna and Keosayan Tigran are a family, although they have not legalized their relationship. They have two wonderful children growing up.

In 2000, Margarita was in the arena of military operations in Chechnya and reported in a bulletproof vest. For her dedication to her profession, for her courage and professionalism, she was given a state award. In the same year, Margarita became the winner of the II All-Russian competition of regional television and radio companies. Her television report about Chechen children was recognized as the best. All in the same 2000, she was also awarded a presidential scholarship.

In 2010, in Moscow, the Armenian president presented the famous journalist with the Movses Khorenatsi medal, the highest government award of the Republic of Armenia. She has several more state awards of the Russian Federation: “For services to the fatherland, 4th degree” (2014), two “Order of Friendship” (2007 and 2008), etc. In 2012, the name of Margarita Simonyan was included in the list of 100 most influential women Russia, where she took 33rd place. She is a member of the public council at the main directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia, and since 2013, by appointment of D. Kiselev, she has assumed the post of editor-in-chief of MIA Rossiya.

After what happened in Ukraine, Margarita Simonyan was on the list of 49 journalists and media executives who were prohibited from entering the territory of the republic.