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AI and Media Ethics. Press councils from South-East Europe and Türkiye adopt landmark declaration
As artificial intelligence (AI) is becoming increasingly embedded into the media ecosystem, ensuring the ethical, responsible, and transparent use of AI is more crucial than ever. In response to this evolving landscape, press and media councils from South-East Europe and Türkiye adopted a landmark declaration at their 4th regional meeting on 19-20 May 2025, in Ohrid, North Macedonia.
The initiative and groundbreaking “Regional Declaration on the Ethical and Transparent Use of Artificial Intelligence in the Media” marks a significant step in reinforcing the role of self-regulatory bodies in upholding ethical journalism standards amid AI’s rising presence in the media sector.
The joint declaration sets out guiding principles for the responsible and ethical use of AI in journalism; in particular, it should support journalists and newsrooms, and not replace human judgement, editorial responsibility, and media workers. Among its core tenets are the need for transparency in AI-generated content, full editorial accountability, and mandatory labelling of Generative AI (Gen-AI) content. The importance of rigorous risk assessments before deployment in high-stake contexts, such as during election periods and public health crises, was also highlighted. Crucially, the document warns against the amplification of bias and disinformation, and urges safeguarding media pluralism, among other vital recommendations.
Acknowledging AI’s potential, the declaration underlines the urgency of enhancing AI literacy, among not only media professionals but also the wider public. In this regard, it underscores the significance of equipping both journalists and citizens with the necessary skills to critically assess and navigate AI-driven content.
Notably, the declaration advocates for the development of sustainable funding models and equitable revenue-sharing mechanisms to ensure the viability of public interest journalism in an AI-influenced media environment.
With this joint declaration, press and media councils from the region highlight the key role of self-regulatory bodies in protecting public interest and promoting responsible journalism in the age of AI.
To ensure tangible impacts, the signatories have committed to concrete actions. These include updating their code of ethics to reflect new AI-related challenges, enhancing cross-border cooperation among self-regulatory bodies in the region, and raising awareness of AI’s growing role in news production and dissemination, and of its impact on the media environment.
The declaration builds on the sustained engagement of press councils from South-East Europe, building on their contributions to the statement and recommendations on AI integration in newsrooms, adopted in December 2024, at a regional conference co-organised by UNESCO and the Ethical Journalism Network (EJN). It also reflects outcomes from a roundtable co-organised with Reporters Without Borders on the integration of Generative Artificial Intelligence (Gen-AI) into South-East Europe’s media sector through self-regulation mechanisms.
UNESCO welcomes this important milestone within the EU-funded project “Building Trust in Media in South-East Europe: Support to Journalism as a Public Good”. It marks a significant step towards building a resilient, inclusive and trust-worthy media system in the digital era.
