It started as a small mailing list of friends on the internet around 1988, and in time more people joined the list. During the early days of the war for Artsakh, we were sharing all the news we could find about events around the motherland with each other, and as the news
grew in quantity, we decided to split the news part of the list into its own "news list", and so was born Groong.
The readership is multinational and comes from every corner of the world. There are many individuals of all nationalities; most of the Armenian Organizations and their various branches throughout the world; the Armenian Church is present on the list: various Prelacies and Dioceses read and disseminate their news on ANN - Groong; journalists and editors from the various media sources which we use articles from, readers from the US, Armenian and other governments (Congress, Senate, Bundestag, ROA parliament, State Departments & Foreign Ministries etc.), International and Non-Government Organizations (NGOs) and think tanks, the IMF, the World Bank, Embassies and consulates from every country and we haven't even started name-dropping...
What sources does ANN - Groong cover?
Whatever we can get our hands on!
Besides many of the wire services and major newspapers published around Armenia, we try to get to international news sources, news from the diaspora, the Caucasus, Russia, Europe, anything. We also try to find news from Azeri and Turkish sources.
There are press releases and event announcements from organizations; there's a Calendar of Events posted on Thursday mornings to remind of upcoming non-commercial, open events.
Here we wish to emphasize that since we're not a money organization (no money is exchanged between anyone, nobody is employed by ANN - Groong, nobody pays for "service", there are no ads, no commercial barters, etc.) that if a source asks us to not share their content, then we’ll simply comply and stop sharing their stuff.
Always remember that whatever is posted on ANN - Groong’s website is only there for a few days, and as a momentary aggregation under one roof. Our aim is not to undermine an original source's clientele, but rather to gather current news about Armenia and Armenians which are already available to our readers around the net under one roof for a few days, for convenience.
How much does it cost?
Groong is FREE, and open to everyone.
And we don't carry advertisements or commercials.
There's no budget, and no money is made by anyone and nobody is employed by ANN - Groong. We have day jobs, we're around the world, and the news comes through the kind and voluntary effort of readers (such as you) who are avid junkies for news about Armenia and Armenians around the world. As they read and find articles, they're kind enough to send some to Groong in order to share them with the rest of us.
At first thought, one could get worried that such an effort can not last, or can not be reliable. ANN - Groong has been the single most reliable and up-to-the-minute source of information on Armenia day in and day out since 1993, and has served a news dissemination purpose since 1990. Nothing compares to the collective and cumulative effort of our readers from around the world and from the homeland. The sun never sets on ANN - Groong 😉
What's the point?
First of all, convenience. All the news is already available to almost everyone with a browser. We just bring it under one roof for a few days, to facilitate the flow of information about Armenians. Without us, everyone would have to hunt all the news all over the internet and most probably miss three quarters of it.
We believe that well informed Armenians become more active and involved in their communities, and keep their heritage alive and vibrant. We want that.
Our time, dedication and open, inclusive philosophy has been rewarded by attracting our present wide and prominent readership, which resulted in most organizations finding their way online to share information about themselves and announce their events with everyone.
As a result of informative press releases, business opportunities in Armenia, announcements about conferences, symposia, cultural events, lectures, readings and other social events abound, in addition to the regular news articles. This in turn helps connect our diasporan communities together and with Armenia, and helps everyone relate to each other better.
How do you post to ANN - Groong?
Email the article to [email protected].
Put exactly and only the title of the article in the subject line.
The main text of the article should be in the body of the email.
What is appropriate for posting on ANN - Groong?
What is NOT appropriate for ANN - Groong?
Oh, we have a WHOLE PAGE on this!
Is there original material on ANN - Groong?
Yes, there is.
We work with experts and specialists and other online acquaintances for articles under our virtual column. We do commission and write Interviews and original articles about interesting people and events as we have time and energy. We work with a network of friends to translate articles of interest to Armenians from various languages to English, and post them to ANN - Groong.
We also stay in touch with as many Armenian communities around the world as possible, so that we can bring their local events to the attention of our entire, worldwide nation, and show that we are indeed all parts of one people.
Some of our past original material is available off of the main page of our website at https://groong.org/ Check under Features:
The Critical Corner
The Literary Groong
Review & Outlook
Entertainment Wire
`Witnesses' to Massacres and Genocide and their Aftermath: Probing the Photographic Record
By Abraham D. Krikorian and Eugene L. Taylor
Onnik Krikorian's Series of Interviews on the Yezidi Community in Armenia
Ruth Bedevian's Armenian House Museum Series
Arthur Hagopian's Reports from Jerusalem
Kay Mouradian's Voices From The Past
There is much more, but we haven't had time to put them all on the web.
What are ANN - Groong's "associations"?
A major point of pride for us is the fact that here on the Internet, we've maintained a 100% partisanship-free medium for all Armenians. We all come together on ANN - Groong, providing each other with information and support around the clock, without looking for irrelevant divisions or for reward. Nowhere is Armenian unity stronger than online on ANN - Groong.
How does ANN - Groong works?
ANN - Groong is available to readers in 3 ways:
1. In Email: You may receive Groong in your email. When you to the mail list. You will receive posted news in your email as they are sent out.
2. On the Web:
https://groong.org/news provides A week's worth of Groong postings are online and available at this site.
3. On Facebook:
The main Groong group is at https://www.facebook.com/groups/groong/
There is also an Arabic news stream at: https://www.facebook.com/groups/515855295223573/
