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Complaints system is an initiative taken and supported by the commission of “Ethical Charter for Syrian Media” within the efforts of self-regulation for the Syrian media sector. The purpose of this initiative is to develop media practice and increase professional quality of press content published in different Syrian mass media. The system also forms a professional lead that make Syrian mass media and its workers commit with ethical and professional code of conduct as well as standards of independent journalism and provides a regulatory reference for complaints for anyone that got affected from any violations or breach for the ethics of journalism profession that might be done by Syrian media organizations in their posts. The system works according to clear specifications and mechanisms authorized by an independent committee called complaints committee.
The authority of the complaints committee is driven from ethical references and professional norms of the profession of journalism, and all its decisions are morally and ethically binding but they aren’t legally binding and don’t result in any judicial procedures of financial penalties.
● This system aims, through its work, at organizing the relationship between audience and Syrian mass media as well as raising awareness of audience about its right to complain and correct the mistakes of publishing as well as objecting professional and ethical violations which might result from media coverages of Syrian mass media. The system also guides the audience to practice his right in a professional way.
● This system aims at urging mass media to be cautious during media practice about committing professional violations and breaches that might harm the audience.
● The complaints committee, through its work, avoids charging parties of the complaint or raising conflicts between audience and mass media.
Complaints system shall not, in any way, be contradicting or preventing or hindering the freedom of journalism that include the right of the journalist (and the media organization) to be oriented with information in all fields and the right to get information and news from their sources as well as publishing, analyzing and commenting on them. The journalist shall also has the right to keep the sources of his information confidential when there are ethical and professional justifications for that.
In the same time, the workers in media field shall feel responsibility towards audience and society and be committed with ethical and professional standards while using their right of freedom of expression.
1- Investigating complaints related to journalistic content that is published on Syrian mass media.
2- Issuing reports and judgments related to professional violations and breaches in Syrian mass media through an independent committee.
3- Providing training, awareness-raising and guidance regarding ethical and professional media standards and perfect practices in Journalist profession.
1. Syrian mass media that signed on “Ethical Charter for Syrian Media”.
2. The board of directors of “Ethical Charter for Syrian Media” in coordination with the complaints committee can expend the framework of complaints system to include issuance of reports that are related to mass media that didn’t signed the Charter.
3. Syrian media organizations that didn’t sign the “Ethical Charter for Syrian Media” can join the complaints system pursuant to an official request to be provided to the board of directors provided that they adhere to the ethical and professional code of conduct and consent on all articles of the system.
● The committee receives complaints presented against Syrian media organizations that signed the Charter and work inside or outside Syria as well as the organizations that joined the complaints system away from the Charter which publish content related to news in its different forms through visual, heard and read means.
● The committee is specialized in media content that is published on different mass media and it includes for example: Photographs, texts, videos, audio recordings, caricatures, data tables and charts.
Everybody whether natural or artificial person can submit a complaint with the media content including:
● Media organizations.
● Journalists and workers in media field.
● Any person from the audience that got directly affected from content of a material published on the mass media with the condition of having proofs for the damage and description for it.
● Any persons from the audience that sees that the media content violates the standards of “accuracy” and “correctness” with the condition of having proofs for the mistake and description for it.
● The acceptance of complaints is limited to complaints against Syrian mass media and media organizations that signed the “Ethical Charter for Syrian Media” as well as the organizations that joined the complaints system from outside the Charter.
● The Complaints System was established to support the mass media signatories of the Charter and the work scope of the Committee can be extended to include the rest of Syrian media organizations or media organizations specialized in the Syrian affair after at least one year from applying the complaints system.
The complaint can be submitted through the link below, provided that the complaint includes:
● A copy or picture or link for the material subject of the complaint.
● Specifying the violated item within the professional code of conduct.
● Description for the violation and explanation for the reason behind thinking that it forms a violation for the professional code of conduct.
● Copies or pictures for the communications with the complained mass media if exist.
● It is always preferred to submit the complaint in the nearest possible time from the date of committing the violation or breach.
● The committee looks into the incoming complaints for the materials that are published before less than three months from the date of submitting the complaint, thus the complaints that come outside this period shall be formally rejected.
● The period of three months are counted from the date of being aware of publishing the content if the complaint is submitted by a person from the audience who is directly affected from the published content, providing that he owns evidences that proves the damage and describes it. And in all cases, the right of the affect persons to submit a complaint legally falls after one year from publication.
