Reporting and editing are governed in the legislation in two separate sub-paragraphs and with two separate logics.
Their Places in the Legislation
| Criterion | Reporter | Editor |
|---|---|---|
| Sub-paragraph (daily political newspaper) | Art. 19/1-h | Art. 19/1-g |
| Other titles in the sub-paragraph | On its own | News manager, sub-editor, chief |
| The 17-field condition | None | Yes (non-political publications aside) |
| Present in every list? | Yes | Yes — but with the field qualification |
| At Anadolu Agency | Four seniority grades | None — the counterparts are the news managers (Art. 23/1-d) |
| At TRT | None — within the scope of Art. 25/1-ç | None — within the scope of Art. 25/1-ç |
The Difference in the Field Condition
Art. 19/1-g: on condition of working in the fields of politics, home news, foreign news, current affairs, the economy, finance, celebrity news, education, sport, culture and the arts, tourism, the family, health, science and technology, the environment, exclusive news and new media news; the news manager or editor or sub-editor or chief.
Art. 19/1-h: The reporter.
Pay and Employment Rights
The Press Card Regulation does not govern pay. The pay and employment rights of journalists are governed in Law No. 5953 on the Regulation of Relations Between Employees and Employers in the Press Profession, which draws no distinction by title.
Both Count in the Official Announcement Staff
Official Announcements and Advertisements Regulation Art. 18/2 requires the same conditions of everyone to be shown in the intellectual worker staff — it draws no distinction by title:
- A written and full-time employment contract complying with Law No. 5953
- The wage paid in full and in advance, over a full day and a full month
- Actually doing the work corresponding to the duty in the contract
- The social security notifications and tax accruals made in time
The Difference in Liability
Under Law No. 5187 criminal liability belongs to the author of the work and, in certain cases, to the responsible manager. Neither “reporter” nor “editor” is named as a title in that chain; what is decisive is who produced the work. We covered the detail in Press Law No. 5187 article by article.
Which Should You Apply With?
- Apply with whatever title appears in your employment contract.
- If you are an editor, sub-editor, news manager or chief, state your field (one of the 17).
- If you are a reporter no field condition is required; but stating your specialisation is useful in practice.
- Notify a change of title in time — notifying a job title change.
Conclusion
The reporter appears in the Press Card Regulation in a sub-paragraph listed on its own and without a field condition; it is found in every publication-type list. The editor, by contrast, is listed in the same sub-paragraph as the news manager, sub-editor and chief and on the condition of working in one of the 17 news fields (non-political publications aside). Law No. 5953 draws no distinction as to pay between the two.