{"id":8772,"date":"2024-05-31T18:04:01","date_gmt":"2024-05-31T15:04:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cje.org.ua\/?post_type=news&p=8772"},"modified":"2024-05-31T18:04:02","modified_gmt":"2024-05-31T15:04:02","slug":"regarding-the-complaint-against-vakhtang-kipiani-s-facebook-page","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/cje.org.ua\/en\/news\/regarding-the-complaint-against-vakhtang-kipiani-s-facebook-page\/","title":{"rendered":"Regarding the Complaint against Vakhtang Kipiani\u2019s Facebook Page"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Decision<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission on Journalistic Ethics regularly receives complaints regarding the actions of journalists on social media. This involves not only their publications \u2014 complainants may contest the removal of comments or a journalist \u201cbanning\u201d a user on their page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On May 3, 2024, the Commission received almost simultaneously two complaints \u2014 from Liudmyla Polishchuk and Yuliia Hudzenko \u2014 regarding the discussion on the page under the posts of the editor-in-chief of Istorychna Pravda, and now a military servant, Vakhtang Kipiani, regarding the construction of the National Military Memorial Cemetery. The complainants claim that \u201cin his Facebook posts, Vakhtang Kipiani uses deceptive, twisted information,\u201d incites hatred, failed to look into the problem profoundly and rejects alternative viewpoints regarding the negative consequences for the environment if a cemetery is constructed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Commission believes that topics such as the memorialization of those who perished in the Russia-Ukraine war should be subject to a broad public discussion. At the same time, being easily manipulated, this discussion should involve increased sensitivity of the parties to one another and tolerance for opposing views. It should also be kept in mind what the roles of the parties are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Journalists must understand that even on social media pages, they may be perceived as journalists. Conversely, the audience should also understand that every media person has the right to freedom of thought in their personal space, i.e., on the personal page on a certain social media platform.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In connection with this, the Commission points out to journalists that it is important to clearly delineate their \u201cprivate\u201d and \u201cpersonal\/professional\u201d pages, where different requirements regarding statements and public or professional criticism may apply. After all, journalists\u2019 pages that are \u201cpersonal and professional\u201d at once have tens or hundreds of thousands of followers, and their reach and impact on the audience is akin to that of traditional media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While there are no hard criteria for delineation between \u201cprivate\u201d and \u201cpersonal\/professional\u201d pages, the Commission believes the following guidelines can be used:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201ca private page\u201d:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n