Today, a meeting of the Management Board of the Azerbaijan Press Council was held, APA reports.
The Chairman of the Press Council Rashad Majid, opening the meeting with the opening speech emphasized that the meeting coincided with the 21st year of the Council's operation, and conveyed his congratulations to the Press Council members.
Rashad Majid, providing information about the work done since the last meeting, said that the Council worked productively in the past period. He reminded the moments regarding the participation of the media in the February 7 extraordinary presidential elections in Azerbaijan. The chairman said that the "hotline" of the Press Council operated on Election Day. During Election Day, representatives of the media covering the voting process received only one request to their mobile and landline numbers of the Press Council which operated in this regimen. The person was informed and the requirements of the legislation were explained to him.
On the day of the election, at the same time, the members of the Press Council's Management Board, registered as journalists and observers, observed the conditions created for journalists to cover the process at the polling stations in the capital and regions.
In the pre-election period, the monitoring group of the Council of Ministers reviewed the materials of the country's regularly broadcast media. The results of the monitoring indicated that Azerbaijani journalism was sensitive to the formation of a fair competitive environment during the election campaign and ensured the realization of society's right to receive objective information. Also, there were no "black publicity" trends or other similar unpleasant situations in the media.
Rashad Majid also pointed out that in the past period, the Council of Ministers has organized 5 jubilee meetings for those who spent their lives in the journalistic profession and distributed obituaries for 3 deceased journalists. In addition, 4 meetings with foreign media representatives were organized in the Council.
The State Council issued a joint statement with the Media Development Agency and commented on the sharing of photos and videos by several media subjects in connection with the murder committed in the Khatai district of Baku on February 13 and the professional violations committed in that regard. Also, the book "Ziyayi Gafqaziyya (1880-1884)" was presented under the joint organization of the Council and the Nizami Institute of Literature of ANAS.
At the meeting, the Secretariat of the Council of Ministers informed about the issues discussed at the meeting of the Complaints Commission of the Council held on March 14, 2024, at the "Azerbaijan Press Council" auditorium at the Faculty of Journalism of Baku State University. Regarding the concern of the "Azerbaijan Judges Association" Public Union about the materials published on a number of websites related to the courts, it was stated that media organizations sometimes make generalizations when publishing material about a specific court process. As a result, a wrong opinion is formed about the judiciary in the country. Therefore, it was decided to prepare a recommendation text of the Press Council justifying the inadmissibility of such situations and calling on journalists to show sensitivity.
In the information of the Secretariat of the Council of Ministers, the presence of records of oral complaints to the Council by various citizen groups was also brought to attention. It was reported that during the reporting period, work was conducted on 10 complaints of this kind, and dissatisfactions from media outlets were eliminated by reaching mutual agreements.
At the meeting, the members of the Management Board of the Press Council - Algish Musayev, editor-in-chief of "Yeni Azerbaijan" newspaper, and Akif Ashirli, editor-in-chief of "Sharq" newspaper, were presented with congratulatory plaques and diplomas on their 55th anniversary. Nurshan Guliyev, editor-in-chief of APA Media Group was awarded another diploma on the occasion of the 50th anniversary. The exceptional work of all three journalists in the formation of modern media traditions in Azerbaijan was emphasized.
In connection with the current issue, opinions were exchanged on the reaction of the Central Council to the processes taking place in our media space, including the moments related to journalism. Also, in the coming period, the organization of joint meetings with the media organizations of the Turkish world was discussed, and the activities in the current direction were determined.