Azerbaijani Press Council prepares conduct code for journalists

Last week, the Azerbaijani Press Council presented a Code of Professional Conduct for Journalists, the head of the OSCE Baku Office Ali Bilge Cankorel declared, Trend reports.

"The new code is more in line with international norms than the previous one, meets high criteria and will correspond to Azerbaijan's needs," Cankorel stressed.

He expressed his confidence that the council will receive even greater support from society with the new rules of media self-regulation in the code.

"Each media representative should follow the code's requirements to ensure press freedom," Cankorel added. He noted that media freedom is especially important in the run-up to the fall elections.

"Foreign experts were involved in preparing this code, and discussions with the OSCE Baku Office were also held," said the chairman of the Press Council, Aflatun Amashov.

The new law should prevent journalists from writing sensational stories about criminal acts, violence, cruelty and suicide. They should not write articles that could affect the objectivity of a court during a criminal case, create panic among the public, or exaggerate information about terrorist acts as well.