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Resolution 1636 (2008)
Indicators for media in a democracy
1. The Parliamentary Assembly recalls
the importance of media freedom. Freedom of expression and information
in the media is an essential requirement of democracy. Public participation
in the democratic decision-making process requires that the public
is well informed and has the possibility of freely discussing different
opinions.
2. All Council of Europe member states have committed themselves
to respecting democratic standards. Democracy and the rule of law
are necessary conditions for membership of the Council of Europe.
Therefore, member states themselves must permanently monitor their
state of democracy. However, democratic standards are also part
of universally recognised human rights in Europe and hence are not
merely an internal affair of a state. Council of Europe member states
must also analyse the state of democracy in all the member states,
in particular at the Assembly level.
3. The Council of Europe has set standards for Europe on media
freedom through Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights
(ETS No. 5) and a number of related recommendations by the Committee
of Ministers as well as resolutions and recommendations by the Parliamentary
Assembly.
4. The Assembly also monitors media freedom before national
elections and produces an analysis on the basis of standards set
by the Council for Democratic Elections comprising representatives
of the European Commission for Democracy through Law (Venice Commission),
the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of
Europe and the Parliamentary Assembly.
5. The Assembly welcomes the comparative assessments of national
media situations prepared, for example, by Reporters Without Borders
(Paris), the International Press Institute (Vienna), Article 19
(London), and other organisations. This work provides for important
public scrutiny over media freedom, but it does not relieve national
parliaments and governments of their political duty to look at their
own media situation.
6. The Assembly also welcomes the UNESCO media development indicators
drawn up in consultation with experts from Article 19, the West
African Newsmedia and Development Centre and others, which shall
help determine communication development strategies within the overall
context of national development.
7. The Assembly considers it necessary for a number of principles
concerning media freedom to be respected in a democratic society.
A list of such principles would facilitate analyses of national
media environments in respect of media freedom, which could identify
problematic issues and potential shortcomings. This will enable
member states to discuss, at European level, possible actions to
address those problems.
8. The Assembly invites national parliaments to analyse their
own media situation regularly in an objective and comparable manner
in order to be able to identify shortcomings in their national media
legislation and practice and take appropriate measures to remedy
them. Such analyses should be based on the following list of basic
principles:
8.1. the right to freedom
of expression and information through the media must be guaranteed
under national legislation, and this right must be enforceable.
A high number of court cases involving this right is an indication
of problems in the implementation of national media legislation
and should require revised legislation or practice;
8.2. state officials shall not be protected against criticism
and insult at a higher level than ordinary people, for instance
through penal laws that carry a higher penalty. Journalists should
not be imprisoned, or media outlets closed, for critical comment;
8.3. penal laws against incitement to hatred or for the protection
of public order or national security must respect the right to freedom
of expression. If penalties are imposed, they must respect the requirements
of necessity and proportionality. If a politically motivated application
of such laws can be implied from the frequency and the intensity
of the penalties imposed, media legislation and practice must be
changed;
8.4. journalists must not be subjected to undue requirements
by the state before they can work;
8.5. political parties and candidates must have fair and equal
access to the media. Their access to media shall be facilitated
during election campaigns;
8.6. foreign journalists should not be refused entry or work
visas because of their potentially critical reports;
8.7. media must be free to disseminate their content in the
language of their choice;
8.8. the confidentiality of journalists’ sources of information
must be respected;
8.9. exclusive reporting rights concerning major events of
public interest must not interfere with the public’s right to freedom
of information;
8.10. privacy and state secrecy laws must not unduly restrict
information;
8.11. journalists should have adequate working contracts with
sufficient social protection, so as not to compromise their impartiality
and independence;
8.12. journalists must not be restricted in creating associations
such as trade unions for collective bargaining;
8.13. media outlets should have editorial independence from
media owners, for instance by agreeing with media owners on codes
of conduct for editorial independence, to ensure that media owners
do not interfere in daily editorial work or compromise impartial
journalism;
8.14. journalists must be protected against physical threats
or attacks because of their work. Police protection must be provided
when requested by journalists who feel threatened. Prosecutors and
courts must deal adequately, and in a timely manner, with cases
where journalists have received threats or have been attacked;
8.15. regulatory authorities for the broadcasting media must
function in an unbiased and effective manner, for instance when
granting licences. Print media and Internet-based media should not
be required to hold a state licence which goes beyond a mere business
or tax registration;
8.16. media must have fair and equal access to distribution
channels, be they technical infrastructure (for example, radio frequencies,
transmission cables, satellites) or commercial (newspaper distributors, postal
or other delivery services);
8.17. the state must not restrict access to foreign print media
or electronic media including the Internet;
8.18. media ownership and economic influence over media must
be made transparent. Legislation must be enforced against media
monopolies and dominant market positions among the media. In addition,
concrete positive action should be taken to promote media pluralism;
8.19. if media receive direct or indirect subsidies, states
must treat those media fairly and with neutrality;
8.20. public service broadcasters must be protected against
political interference in their daily management and their editorial
work. Senior management positions should be refused to people with clear
party political affiliations;
8.21. public service broadcasters should establish in-house
codes of conduct for journalistic work and editorial independence
from political sides;
8.22. “private” media should not be run or held by the state
or state-controlled companies;
8.23. members of government should not pursue professional
media activities while in office;
8.24. government, parliament and the courts must be open to
the media in a fair and equal way;
8.25. there should be a system of media self-regulation including
a right of reply and correction or voluntary apologies by journalists.
Media should set up their own self-regulatory bodies, such as complaints
commissions or ombudspersons, and decisions of such bodies should
be implemented. These measures should be recognised legally by the
courts;
8.26. journalists should set up their own professional codes
of conduct and they should be applied. They should disclose to their
viewers or readers any political and financial interests as well
as any collaboration with state bodies such as embedded military
journalism;
8.27. national parliaments should draw up periodic reports on
the media freedom in their countries on the basis of the above catalogue
of principles and discuss them at European level.
9. The Assembly invites the Council of Europe Commissioner for
Human Rights to draw up information reports on member states where
problems exist in the implementation of the above list of basic
principles as regards freedom of expression.
10. The Assembly also invites media professionals and companies,
as well as media associations, to apply and develop further the
above list of basic principles applicable to the media.