Our name
In Armenian, lyus means light. We took the name because light is the thing culture does: it reveals, it warms, it lets you see where you are standing. Our founding motto has never changed — “Find your own light, so you never become someone else’s shadow.” It is a small sentence with a large ambition, and it still describes exactly what we try to do for our readers and contributors.
Where we came from
LyunSe began as a youth program — a nightly hour of music, conversation and cultural reporting made by and for young people. From the start it had the restless, generous energy of student radio: the sense that everything happening in the city was interesting if you paid enough attention. When the program grew into a website, it kept that instinct. Today LyunSe operates entirely as an independent digital magazine, unaffiliated with any broadcaster or institution, funded by and answerable to its readers.
What we cover
Culture is our centre of gravity. We write about concerts and exhibitions, theatre premieres and new records, the literary anniversaries that give the Armenian year its rhythm, and the folk traditions that refuse to disappear. Around that core we report on society, education, sport, the economy, the environment and international affairs — always from a distinctly Armenian point of view, and always with an eye for the human detail that a wire report would miss.
We also keep two things alive from our broadcast days. LyunSe TV produces short documentary video about the people and places we cover, and RadioArt is our ongoing love letter to Armenian music and audio culture.
How we work
We believe good cultural journalism is a public service. Our editorial principles are simple:
- Look closely. We prefer reporting to recycling — going to the concert, the village, the studio, the protest.
- Be generous, not naive. We champion Armenian creativity without pretending everything is excellent.
- Make room for new voices. Our Free Microphone section exists so that readers, students and first-time writers can publish alongside our regular contributors.
- Respect the reader’s time. Clear language, real information, no filler.
Armenia has one of the oldest continuous cultures on earth — a written language and a distinct artistic tradition stretching back more than fifteen centuries, recognised today across institutions from UNESCO to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Our job is to connect that inheritance to the people making culture right now. If that mission speaks to you, we’d love to hear from you — contact the editors.