Belgium Unesco Supports Tender

To bring guidance on the concept of journalistic due diligence which is a new notion introduced in the Media Law of Montenegro in 2020 the 3 self-regulatory mechanisms of Montenegro joined forces to develop specific guidelines for journalists of the country. The new Media Law states that editors and journalists will not be held liable for inaccurate content if it is established that it has been produced following journalistic due diligence.Media self-regulatory mechanisms in Montenegro welcomed the recognition of journalistic due diligence in the media law as a way to incite the medias commitment to ethical and professional journalistic standards. Yet conscious of the need to clarify the law and this notion of due diligence they joined forces to develop dedicated joint guidelines and present them to the media community of the country.Developed by Ranko Vujovic Aneta Spajic from the Media Council for Self-Regulation in Montenegro and by the ombudsman of daily Dan Ilija Jovicevic and ombudswoman of daily Vijesti and weekly Monitor Paula Petricevic the joint guidelines were presented to the countrys media community on 21 October 2021 at the EU Info Center in Podgorica.All over the world journalism has been weakened by the pursuit of click baits sensationalism and widespread disinformation. It is true however that journalists can make a mistake and inadvertently report inaccurate information. But it is important that they are not penalized for those mistakes if they have done their work professionally employing journalistic due diligence said Ranko Vujovic Executive Director of the Media Council for Self-Regulation in Montenegro. This is why I am proud to be part of efforts with my colleagues from the self-regulatory system in Montenegro to provide greater guidance for ethical standards in journalism by exploring the notion of journalistic due diligence he added. Produced under the framework of the UNESCO EU-funded project Building Trust in Media in South East Europe and Turkey Phase 2 the guidelines were also presented on 12 November to students of the Journalism Department of the Faculty of Political Science at the University of Montenegro.It was fundamental for us to reach out to younger generations that will in the future bear the responsibility of forming a public opinion to familiarize them more closely with the concept of journalistic due diligence.Paula Petricevic Ombudswoman of daily Vijesti and weekly MonitorThe objective of the Media Council is now to pursue a dialogue with the broader journalistic community in the country with regards to including the recommendations developed by the working group formally as an annex to the Montenegrin Code of Journalists ethics.