The press ethics principles are professional rules determined by the General Assembly of the Press Advertisement Agency under Article 49 of Law No. 195. This guide covers their legal position, where they produce effects and what the 2025 Constitutional Court annulment changed.
The legal basis: Article 49 of Law No. 195
Article 49, in regulating obligations towards the Agency, also lists the press ethics principles. Its first paragraph provides that proceedings are taken against newspapers, magazines and online news sites, producers, and those responsible in public administrations and undertakings that fail to comply with the duties imposed by this law, by regulations made under it, or by the decisions the Agency’s General Assembly takes on the matters written in this law, or with the press ethics principles.
The press ethics principles are therefore listed in the same sentence as the provisions of the legislation, and a breach of them is tied to the same consequence as a breach of the legislation.
The Constitutional Court annulment (2025)
There is a current and decisive development here. Sub-paragraph (a) of Article 49, which regulated the sanction of suspending official announcements and advertisements, was annulled by the Constitutional Court’s decision of 17/6/2025, E.2023/168, K.2025/132. By the same decision the reference to “(a)” in the objection paragraph of the article was also annulled as regards the third sentence.
| Sub-para. | Subject | Status |
|---|---|---|
| (a) | Suspension of official announcements and advertisements | Annulled (Constitutional Court 17/6/2025, E.2023/168, K.2025/132) |
| (b) | Closure of the producer establishment for a period not exceeding two months | In force |
| (c) | Disciplinary proceedings in respect of those responsible in public administrations and undertakings | In force |
Where do they produce effects?
1. The press card (Law 5187, Additional Art. 6(2))
The second paragraph of Additional Article 6 of Press Law No. 5187 refers to them directly: where the holder of a press card engages in conduct contrary to the press ethics principles determined under Article 49 of Law No. 195 of 2/1/1961, the Commission may, taking the nature of the breach into account, warn the press card holder or decide to cancel the press card.
The detail is covered in the press card guide.
2. The announcement reporting additional indicator (Reg. Art. 68(3))
Article 68(3) of the Regulation on Official Announcements and Advertisements provides that where it is established, of its own motion or upon complaint, that an online news site benefiting from the announcement reporting additional indicator has breached the press ethics principles in the content of its own social network accounts, it is deprived of that additional indicator by decision of the Board of Directors for a period not exceeding two months.
That provision is striking: what is examined is not the content of the site but the content of the social media account. See the announcement reporting indicator guide.
3. The general framework of obligations
Article 49(1) lists the principles together with the obligations of the legislation. Sub-paragraphs (b) and (c) of the article, still in force, and the other provisions of the legislation are reserved; the text of the article uses the words “without prejudice to the provisions of other legislation”.
Where can the text of the principles be found?
The press ethics principles are determined by a General Assembly decision taken under the procedure in Article 30 of Law No. 195. Under the same article General Assembly decisions are published in the Official Gazette and principle decisions are final.
The right way to reach the current text of the principles is therefore the Press Advertisement Agency’s official publications and the Official Gazette archive.
The practical upshot
The press ethics principles are the one item in the official announcement legislation that binds not only the technical but the editorial side. Alongside measurable conditions such as staffing, content count and traffic, they impose a standard of conduct concerning the content of the publication and of its social media account.
The Constitutional Court’s 2025 annulment removed the statutory basis of the announcement suspension sanction attached to that standard; but the principles continue to produce effects in respect of the press card and the additional indicator.