ABN Media Charter

I. Introduction

Purpose of this regulation:

• To govern internal relations
• To define subordination and levels of decision-making
• To set principles for preparing materials and delivering high-quality, responsible journalism in order to strengthen public trust
• To ensure transparency of operations and independence from any business or political pressure

II. General provisions

1. Mission and values of the media outlet

The mission of the media outlet is to provide its audience with:

• Reliable, verified information (especially in business, economic and financial fields)
• The main views present in society on issues of public importance
• Where necessary, the editorial position as well — clearly labelled as such
• Interesting and useful business entertainment materials and analysis
• High-quality advertising and information services

The values of the media outlet are:

• Impartiality and lack of bias
• Reliability of information
• A strict separation of facts and opinion
• Respect for the personal and business reputation of people and companies
• The editorial view is not an obstacle to presenting other, including opposing, views
• Unconditional observance of business ethics

2. Editorial independence from political, economic, religious or other pressure

• Implementation of the editorial values, editorial policy, and the dissemination of information and ideas do not depend on the interests of owners or of political, economic, religious or other organisations
• Advertisers or sponsors have no advantage in coverage over other sources of information or subjects of reporting

3. Accountability to the audience and public responsibility

• In line with the law, the editorial office publishes an annual report on its revenues
• It discloses its owners and their business interests to the audience
• In the event of a conflict of interest, the editorial office informs the public about it
• A clear procedure is established for responding to public complaints and inquiries
• The editorial office monitors comments on its social-media pages, moderates them to exclude hate speech and insults, and responds to constructive criticism

III. Editorial activity

1. Levels of editorial decision-making

• The editor-in-chief is responsible for all content unless another person is designated
• It is defined who decides on the publication of materials on a given economic or business topic
• The decision-making powers and areas of responsibility of section editors, commentators, journalists and producers are defined
• The journalist who authored the material is responsible for verifying facts in a publication, unless the editorial office has a separate fact-checking team

2. Strict separation of advertising and editorial content

• Editorial content must be strictly separated from advertising
• Any publication that has been paid for (advertorial, press release, commercially sponsored material) must carry a clear label (“Advertisement”, “Sponsored” or “Partner material”)
• Materials about the activities of advertisers and sponsors, as well as business-topic pieces, must have content limits so they do not take on a one-sided promotional character or be perceived as independent journalistic investigation

3. Rules on anonymous sources and source protection

• In all possible cases, cite clearly identified sources
• Avoid anonymous (confidential) sources as far as possible
• Honour promises made to sources and obligations assumed towards them
• Where confidentiality has been agreed, inform only the editor-in-chief and/or another authorised staff member defined by this regulation (for example, the section editor) about the source
• Information not intended for publication (off the record) may be shared only with the editor-in-chief; the latter may, if a prevailing public or economic interest is seen, decide to publish such information in full or in part
• While recognising and respecting the parties’ joint authorship of an interview, information cannot be removed at the interlocutor’s arbitrary request if the editorial office considers publication to be a prevailing public interest and the public’s right to be informed

4. Internal fact-checking procedure

• Before submitting a piece for publication, journalists must verify facts from at least two sources, including an identifiable information source, to prevent disinformation spread by chatbots or unverified social platforms
• It is necessary to check not only the facts themselves but also their time and content context (especially for financial reports and market data)
• If editors doubt facts in journalists’ materials, they must verify their reliability before publication
• Check even when you are sure you know the company name, an official’s details or the particulars of a deal
• Official statistics, laws, legal acts and company-register data must be confirmed from official sources
• Quotations from documents or written sources must preserve the original wording
• Verified facts must have appropriate citations

IV. Employment relations

The editorial office concludes written contracts with all staff, defining:

• Staff rights and duties
• Subordination
• Responsibility for exceeding rights or failing to fulfil duties
• Conditions for terminating the contract

a) Rights of journalists

• Journalists have the right to refuse to cover an assigned topic if it conflicts with their ethical or other views, concerns their relatives or colleagues, or if there are other risks of a conflict of interest
• Journalists have the right to receive an explanation of why their unpublished materials were rejected
• If a piece was rejected by the immediate supervisor, journalists have the right to appeal the rejection to the editor-in-chief
• Section editors have the right to reject a journalist’s material, explaining the reasons

b) Duties of journalists

• Journalists must carry out managers’ assignments on time and to a high standard
• Prepare materials and select photos and videos in accordance with the editorial office’s internal standards
• Ensure facts are verified and present only reliable information
• In the event of a conflict of interest, always inform the editor-in-chief and/or the person responsible for the section

If journalists fail to perform their duties on time and to the required standard, they may be held liable under the legislation of the Republic of Armenia and internal workplace disciplinary rules.

V. Requirements for news texts, headlines, photographs, videos and interviews

• The editorial office sets a unified style for news texts, giving priority to answering what, who, when, why and where
• The headline and lead (first paragraph) of a news piece must reveal its essence, leaving details for the rest of the text
• It is recommended that the headline contain an action verb that makes clear what happened
• Photographs must relate directly to the news text
• Videos must complement the text rather than merely repeat it
• The audience must be clearly informed about editing or other technical intervention in photographs and videos
• When using photographs and videos that are not our own, copyright must be strictly observed, permission obtained and the source credited
• Direct quotations should correspond as closely as possible to what was said; limited editing is allowed to correct language issues, without distorting meaning
• The editorial office prepares and provides all staff with a unified guide to the spelling of terms, abbreviations and names
• Recorded interviews are broadcast without edits that distort meaning, except where hate speech or calls prohibited by law are present
• In text interviews, preserve the interlocutor’s style and vocabulary, allowing only necessary linguistic corrections

VI. Presence on social media and rules of conduct on journalists’ personal accounts

1. Transparency

• It must be clearly stated whether an account is official or personal
• Only authorised persons may operate the media outlet’s official accounts
• A journalist’s or other staff member’s personal account must state their full name and position
• Creating and operating accounts with a false identity (fakes) is prohibited

2. Requirements for account content

• Social-media posts must follow the standards set by the editorial regulation
• Verify published facts and separate them from personal opinions and comments
• Respect copyright on social networks as well
• Personal accounts must not spread statements or posts that could be perceived as political bias or as discrimination on racial, sexual, religious or other grounds

3. Avoiding conflicts of interest on social media

• It is not recommended to place political or party symbols on personal or official accounts
• Particular care is required when joining or following any political or narrowly interested group
• Membership of social-media groups may serve only the purpose of staying informed, never active participation in propaganda actions, which can endanger journalistic independence

VII. Rules on the use of artificial intelligence (AI)

• It must always be clearly stated if content, a photograph, an image or a video was created using artificial-intelligence tools
• Bear in mind that AI tools may disregard copyright, so compliance with copyright rules must be checked
• Use AI tools cautiously, avoiding unlawful processing of personal or confidential data
• Be especially careful when distributing AI-generated information, as it may contain disinformation or deepfakes
• Any data obtained via AI is subject to mandatory verification from reliable and alternative sources
• Alongside the use of AI technologies, the editorial office encourages journalists’ creative thinking, analytical skills and professional responsibility