Considering the Freedom of Communication in our country as the basic precondition of achieving human dignity, open government and democracy;
Pledging with our own free will that we shall struggle whenever and wherever necessary against all restrictions concerning Freedom of Communication generating from the law makers or other organizations and persons;
Accepting the Freedom of Communication as an instrument of public's right to learn the truth;
Assessing that the main function of journalism is to discover the facts and communicate them to the public without distortion or exaggeration;
Reiterating our rejection of any external interference over the activities of the Press Council;
We, journalists, declare to the public to observe the following Code of Professional Principles of the Press, as a corollary of our above mentioned fundamental beliefs:
1- No person shall be denounced or ridiculed in publications on account of his/her race, sex, social status or religious beliefs.
2- Nothing that restricts freedom of thought, conscience or expression or is damaging or offensive to public morals, religious sentiments or the foundations of the institution of family shall be published.
3- Journalism, being a public function, shall not be used as a vehicle of immoral private pursuits and interests.
4- Nothing that humiliates, ridicules or defames private or public persons beyond the limits of fair criticism shall be published.
5- Private lives of individuals shall not be reported, except when made necessary by public interest.
6- Every effort shall be made to ensure that news stories that can be verified through normal journalistic channels shall not be published before investigation or shall not be put in print before a thorough assessment of its validity.
7- Information given on condition of confidentiality shall not be published, except when made urgently necessary by public interest.
8- A media product produced by a medium of communication shall not be presented to the public by another medium of communication as its own, until it has completed its distribution process. Attention shall be paid to cite the source of media products received from news agencies.
9- No person shall be declared "guilty" until he/she has been tried and convicted by judicial authorities.
10- Those actions deemed criminal by laws shall not be attributed to individuals without reasonable and persuasive evidence to that effect.
11 - Journalists shall protect the confidentiality of their sources, except in the circumstances where the source is deliberately trying to mislead the public for personal, political, economic, etc. reasons.
12- Journalists shall refrain from doing their duty with methods and manners that may be detrimental to the good name of the profession.
13- Publication of material that is conducive to violence and use of force shall be avoided.
14- Paid announcements and advertisements shall be presented in such a way that leaves no room for doubt regarding their true nature.
15- Embargoes on publication dates shall be respected.
16- The press shall respect the right of reply and correction arising from inaccurate in-formation.
