"Speaking In One Voice" Armenian Assembly Hosts Inspiring Panel of Armenians in Media and Entertainment

Pasadena, CA - The Armenian Assembly of America (Assembly) convened an inspiring panel discussion by prominent Armenians in media and entertainment at the University Club of Pasadena, California, on Sunday, November 2, 2025.

The panel featured several significant figures from the media and entertainment industry headlined by Michael Agbabian, Award Winning television producer and Co-President and Co-Founder of Mission Control Media, and Teni Melidonian, Chief Oscars Officer of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, both Assembly Terjenian-Thomas Washington D.C. intern alumni. Joining them were Michael Goorjian, Emmy Award-Winning actor, writer, director of Amerikatsi, and Sona Movsesian, Executive Assistant to Conan O’Brien. Armen Karaoghlanian, Co-Founder of the Armenian Film Society, moderated the panel discussion with thoughtful emphasis on the power of Armenian storytelling.

Leading off the evening, Assembly Co-Chair Talin Yacoubian offered powerful opening remarks to a capacity audience centered on the importance of telling our story as Armenians and why advocacy matters.

“For more than five decades, the Armenian Assembly has been advocating for Armenians, creating advocates for life, because advocacy matters. It means something when a room like this comes together. If you’ve ever thought someone should speak up, someone should support that project, someone should elevate that young talent, that someone is us. It’s all of us,” Co-Chair Yacoubian emphasized.

“This moment in our history demands more than just admiration from afar. It demands participation. Mentoring. Funding. Showing up. Using whatever platform you have, however big or small,” Yacoubian concluded.

For Teni Melidonian, that journey began in Washington, D.C., where she interned with the Assembly through the Terjenian-Thomas internship Program before rising to her current role as Chief Oscars Officer. Reflecting on her early experiences, she spoke about how those lessons in coalition building informed her career in entertainment.

“I learned a lot in Washington,” said Melidonian. “What I learned being a part of the advocacy world was really the importance of coalition building, collaboration, and unifying people together.”

“That was really seminal for me when I started working with these organizations. We were the most successful when the organizations were united under one single message,” she continued.

“As I moved into entertainment, that is the tool. Collaboration. Getting that message together. Really having one voice, no matter if there are factions, if you’re not agreeing on everything, you have to have that one single voice out externally to the public,” concluded Melidonian.

While discussing advocacy as cultural diplomacy, Sona Movsesian shared her experience taking Conan O’Brien to Armenia more than ten years ago, and how celebrity influences advocacy.

“Hearing a lot of Armenians say they like the [Conan in Armenia] episode means a lot. Hearing a lot of non-Armenians say they didn't know anything about Armenians before they watched it, because [the episode] went everywhere, that really means a lot more to me,” shared Movsesian. “Definitely in my case, celebrity was a huge part of my advocacy,” Movsesian concluded.

On the topic of personal identity, and how relationships can also serve as powerful tools for advocacy, the panelists discussed how influence is not defined by audience size, but by authenticity. Reflecting on the impact of his film Amerikatsi, Michael Goorjian spoke about how cinema can serve as a bridge for understanding.

“As filmmakers, we get to use film as a way to talk about who we are as people. So that when all this important work is happening with the Armenian Assembly and other organizations, people out there know who we are, and film obviously is one of the greatest ways to understand a culture.”

Goorjian added, “Power is also a conversation. There are many people in this room who maybe don't have a seat at the table, but you can maybe open a colleague's mind to something new. So, whether you have the platform or not, I think each one of us has a role to play.”

Michael Agbabian emphasized that advocacy extends beyond policy and into everyday professionalism. “What I feel like I am, every day, is an ambassador. If [colleagues] have a good experience with me and my company, that speaks well to their experience with Armenians.” Agbabian continued that each and every Armenian is an ambassador. “Every time I make a new connection, or I make that sale, and I’m working with new executives who don’t know who I am, I feel that way because I’m representing who we are.”

To close the discussion, Karaoghlanian posed a reflective question to the panelists: “What do you recommend that we do to tell our Armenian story and our message?” Responding, Melidonian emphasized her remarks on the importance of unity in advocacy.

“Having one singular message–Armenians coming together–it’s a really powerful tool,” said Melidonian. “Speaking in one voice, whatever it is that we’re working towards, whatever challenge our community is facing, coming together and sticking to that one message, I think it’s critical.”

Assembly Co-Chairs Talin Yacoubian and Oscar Tatosian, in thanking the participants, stressed the value of holding a panel discussion among professionals specializing in communications, and for their suggestions on properly messaging the interests and values of the Armenian American community as it looks ahead to addressing the many challenges facing the Armenian people in Armenia and in the diaspora. “We were inspired to hear their valuable observations, insightful suggestions, and urgent recommendations to assure that the Armenian people speak in a clear and consistent voice,” added the Co-Chairs.

The program also included a special recognition of the Next Generation of Leaders for Armenian American Advocacy, honoring Elen and Gagik Hovhannisyan for their continued commitment to community engagement. Both alumni of the Armenian Assembly’s 2022 Terjenian-Thomas Internship Program, the siblings began their journeys interning at the Armenian Embassy. In 2023, they returned to Washington, D.C. to participate in the program once again–Gagik as an intern for Representative Kevin Mullin (D-CA), and Elen as the Assembly’s Assistant Intern Coordinator. Since then, they have remained active advocates within their Armenian community in California. Gagik was a 2025 Advocacy Summit Scholar, one of 80 students who participated in the Assembly's Advocacy Summit advocating for pro-Armenian issues in Washington D.C.

The panel was followed by a reception, fostering conversation and connections for all in attendance.

Lights, Camera, Advocate Panel and Reception was made possible by the generosity of Assembly sponsors and donors, and the support of members of the Southern California Regional Council and the LA County Regional Committee.

SPONSORS

Star

David and Margaret Mgrublian

Director

David and Myrna Onanian

Producer

Elizabeth Agbabian

DegreeMentors College Consulting

Ara and Sonya Hacet

Marguerite Hougasian

Lisa Kalustian

John and Ani Kedeshian

Steven Mora

Vagharshak Pilossyan

Lusine Pilosyan

Joe and Joyce Stein

Hagop and Tamar Tujian

Gifts In Support of Our Work

Leo Doumanian

Nora Ferrara

Romik Hacobian, Media City Design

Suzanne Hagopian

Edward Haroutunian

John Haytaian

Hratch Karakachian

Murat Kasparian

Alex Keledjian

Richard Mikaelian

Mariam Nishanian

Raffi Toroyan

Established in 1972, the Armenian Assembly of America is the largest Washington-based nationwide organization promoting public understanding and awareness of Armenian issues. The Assembly is a strictly non-partisan, 501(c)(3) tax-exempt membership organization.

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NR# 2025-42