Report on Media in Morocco - Arab Center for the Rule of Law and ...

The latest development in this regard was the collective agreement for professional
journalists which stipulated that non-observance by a journalist of the ethics of the
profession, especially if he takes part in bribery or refuses to carry out the tasks that
fall within the nature of his competencies, shall be considered as punishable gross
errors. The agreement also binds journalistic institutions to adopt codes of honor or
provisions concerning the ethics of the profession ratified by professional
organizations.
2-1-1 Becoming a Professional Journalist
The National Union for the Moroccan Press summarizes the ethics of journalism in
nine fundamental principles as follows:
1- A journalist derives the elements of the integrity of the profession from the
universal principles of the freedom of speech and human rights;
2- He shall commit to look for facts and inform the public opinion about them
with honesty and loyalty, as a sign of respect of the citizen's right to
information;
3- He shall undertake to observe the sources of news he reports and shall not
plagiarize news and articles;
4- He shall abstain from mixing up between journalistic work and advertisement;
5- He shall avoid defamation and slander;
6- He shall respect the plurality of opinion;
7- He shall refuse any professional intervention and any temptation that violates
the ’ethics of the profession;
8- He shall support his colleagues in lawsuits resulting from practicing the
profession with integrity;
9- He shall defend the dignity of a journalist against all forms of exploitation and
deceit.
If certain newspapers and certain journalists are keen on respecting and defending
these rules, other newspapers and journalists often ignore them. The "Yellow Press",
as called in the past, was the most accused of violations on this level, but was not
alone, because "respectable" newspapers adopted such practices sometimes.
In this regard, the annual reports, prepared by the National Union for the Moroccan
Press on the situation of the press and journalists in Morocco, present many examples
on such practices, such as "piracy, not mentioning the source, rumors and non-respect
of right to reply, defamation, slander and libel, confusion, blackmail and acceptance
of bribery, mixing-up between news and advertisement, settlement of personal
problems among the journalists themselves and between journalists and others" 91 .
The experience of the ethics of the profession committee which preceded the
"National Independent Commission for the Ethics of the Profession and the Freedom
of Speech", reveals that most complaints were related to journalists, the non-respect
of sources of news and plagiarising of the articles and news of others, and the
adoption of articles by journalists who just translated them 92 . According to a study
prepared by a member in the national office of the mentioned union 93 , the same
experience shows that press photographers remain the category most harmed in this
91
Jamal al-Muhafez: "Ethics of Journalism in Morocco", previously mentioned reference.
92
Same reference.
93
Same reference.