En

Tsvetanka Rizova: Integrity is a value, not a vice.

Tsvetanka Rizova is one of the iconic faces of bTV, author and host of the show “Face to Face” since its launch in 2012. She is engaged in publicism because she is deeply concerned with the problems of society and the political situation. Since March 4 this year, Tsvetanka Rizova has been presenting a new analytical and commentary segment on a topical issue of the day every weekday evening after the central bTV newscast. In “Face to Face After the News”, viewers learn more about the important public story that requires context and additional perspective.

Tsvetanka Rizova gave a special interview for the new issue of Manager magazine, in which she tells more about herself and her profession.

Rizova, journalism is a difficult profession that requires dedication and a lot of effort. What has it cost you to be at the top for so many years and what compromises does one have to make?

I don't like the victim role of the profession. I consciously chose journalism, I consciously stayed with it and I consciously want to stay here. Any profession you are attached to requires dedication, patience and passion. And journalism even more so. Because when you're a corrective to others, you must be focused, impeccable and careful yourself. Because you can't make demands on others, you can't compromise, you can't break moral and professional norms. I don't know if that's a compromise, it's more like accepting the rules and living with them without a problem. And you say I'm at the top. I have never accepted myself as a star, as a top, etc. It seems to me that if I accepted it, it would be the beginning of the end. I'm one of those people who are always trying to go up. Just like that - up, freely and with complicity in causes.

You are one of the most iconic hosts on Bulgarian television. How long does it take you to prepare for the Face to Face show every day?

It took me decades. A conversation cannot be prepared in a few hours. It takes daily effort. If you're not alert every minute, there's a good chance you'll miss something. For me, a journalist is not someone who knows the events of the last few days, but of the last few years. That and further back. For whom the conversation is not based on a script of prepared topical questions, but a conversation with context, knowledge of processes and facts over the years. The interlocutor should not be allowed to deceive by relying on a short memory, should not attribute to others what he himself has practiced. He should not be allowed to build rose towers when there is mud around. So - I work 24 hours a day for years. And this particular show is just an expression of the long preparation.

You recently launched a new segment of Face to Face after bTV's central newscast. What can viewers learn there?

Viewers have been asking for more “Face to Face” time for a long time. The management has decided, and I agree, that instead of mechanically extending the length of the show, we should look for a different angle. More news, more specific, more focused on one of the issues of the day. This would be another way for me to test the show's capabilities, to work even more closely with the reporters and news producers, to get a feel for their rhythm. It's a very overused word, but yes, it's a challenge.

How do you see the future of the journalistic profession?

You can't compete with speed. It is breathtaking. News is learned in real time from digital platforms. It is experienced in real time. It is seen in real time. And you can't compete with that, and it doesn't make sense. So, I think journalism must add meaning. It must provide analysis. It must show different perspectives; it must summarize and compare. Because seeing and hearing is different from accepting, realizing and understanding. So - the race for speed is lost, but the race for meaning is won. I am not afraid of online media. But I am afraid of the danger of assuming that everything we see must be accepted uncritically and sleepily. One to one, like this, with our eyes half closed. That's why we don't need new skills, we need to improve and develop good old skills - of seeing wisely, of thinking critically, of generalizing intelligently.

Success at any cost, or success when accompanied by value?

I don't believe in, and I don't like the idea of success at any cost. The betrayals, the great compromises, the nagging, the offering of favors in all directions, the following of orders, probably create in some people a sense of success, of a goal achieved. But it seems so. It's obvious when you're in a place that doesn't match your stature and intellect, when you're assigned a major role in the blur. It's not impossible that these people sometimes play their roles with talent, but the careful eye sees that it's a parody of success.

The full interview can be found in issue 3 of the "Manager" magazine (March-April) from 2025.

Photo: Philip Shopov for bTV