Željko Bodrožić on the New Code: Journalists are Accountable to the Public, not their Audience, Editors are Responsible for Everything Published

(Source: TV Nova) This year, the Independent Journalists’ Association of Serbia (NUNS) celebrates its 30th anniversary, and last week, it adopted the Journalists’ Code of Serbia with only one vote against. Željko Bodrožić, the president of NUNS, spoke to TV Nova’s Dnevnik about the purpose of the new code.

The development of media and new societal circumstances have impacted our reality, particularly the media industry, mentioned Bodrožić as some of the reasons why a new Journalists’ Code was necessary.

“Much has drastically changed since the adoption of the code in 2006, so the Code became outdated. Together with the Journalists’ Association of Serbia (UNS), we created a new one that is now shorter, simpler, and more precisely defined. Based on suggestions received during the public debate, if we advocate for gender-sensitive language, we must implement it in the Code itself, hence the name was changed to the ‘Code of Journalists of Serbia’,” emphasized the president of NUNS.

He added that the most significant changes were made in the chapter on accountability – journalists are accountable to the public, not just their audience, and it insists that everything published in the media falls under editorial responsibility.

“Media outlets are obliged to inform the public if the content was created using artificial intelligence. There are also rules for using social media content, which require the profile owner’s consent. Additionally, in some cases, public interest outweighs the right to privacy,” Bodrožić outlined some of the innovations in the updated Code of Journalists of Serbia.