The honest answer: Law No. 5187 sets no numerical limit here. Art. 5 says "every periodical has a responsible editor"; it contains no provision on how many publications the same person may take that role in.
The Time-Bound Duties the Law Imposes
| Duty | Period | Article |
|---|---|---|
| Publishing a correction and reply - a daily periodical | Within three days at the latest of receiving the text | Art. 14 |
| Publishing a correction and reply - an internet news site | Within one day at the latest of receiving the text | Art. 14 |
| Correction and reply - other periodicals | The first issue after three days | Art. 14 |
| The delivery and retention duty | A two-year archive | Arts. 10, 17 |
| The accuracy of the information in the imprint | Continuous | Arts. 4, 15 |
Criminal Liability Multiplies
Under Art. 11, where in a periodical the author is not known, does not have criminal capacity at the time of publication, cannot be tried in Turkey because they are abroad, or where the penalty to be imposed would be ineffective, the responsible editor and the official they report to are liable.
More Than One Responsible Editor at the Same Publication
The Law governs the opposite direction expressly: where there is more than one responsible editor, the section each is responsible for is stated (Art. 5). So many responsible editors at one publication are possible, and separating the sections is mandatory.
An Indirect Limit: The Official Announcement Staff
If the person is shown on a newspaper's minimum journalist staff, a separate limit comes into play. Art. 20/2 of Press Advertising Agency General Assembly Decision No. 67 of 15 February 1977 requires those to be included in the minimum staff not to do any work requiring physical activity - even partly - outside their staff duty, and to reside in the place where the newspaper they work for is published.
Principle Decision No. 94 of 16/08/1985, in interpreting that condition, sets the measure of whether the duty is performed in a manner consistent with its purpose and on a continuing basis. The same person taking on duties at several publications can create a problem against that measure; we cover it in the two-payrolls guide.
Practical Advice
- Keep responsible editorships to a number you can actually carry out; putting a name on paper enlarges the risk.
- Set up a separate reply and correction tracking flow for each publication - the periods differ.
- If the person is shown on a minimum staff, review the staff duty condition in the Agency decisions.
- Verify at each publication that the responsible editor information in the imprint is current (Arts. 4, 15).
Summary
- Law No. 5187 sets no numerical limit on how many publications one person may serve as responsible editor.
- But it imposes time-bound duties and criminal liability arising separately for each publication.
- For people shown on an official announcement minimum staff, the Agency's staff duty condition is a further restriction.