Cyber Media Guidelines

Freedom of speech, freedom of expression, and press freedom are rights guaranteed by the Pancasila state ideology, the 1945 Constitution of Indonesia, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The existence of cyber media in Indonesia is therefore part of these fundamental freedoms.

Cyber media have unique characteristics that require specific guidelines to ensure professionalism and compliance with Law No. 40/1999 on the Press and the Journalists’ Code of Ethics.

For this reason, the Press Council, together with press organizations, editorial representatives of cyber media, and members of the public, formulated the following Cyber Media News Coverage Guidelines:

1. Scope

  • Cyber Media: Any form of media that uses the internet and engages in journalistic activities in accordance with the Press Law and the Standards for Press Companies established by the Press Council.
  • User-Generated Content (UGC): Any content created or published by users, including articles, images, comments, audio, video, blogs, forums, and similar material.

2. Verification and Fairness

  1. Every news story must be verified.
  2. News that may harm any party must include verification in the same article to ensure accuracy and fairness.
  3. Exceptions may apply if:
    • The news concerns urgent public interest;
    • The original source is credible and competent;
    • The source for verification cannot be reached in time;
    • The article clearly states that verification is pending, with a note in italics at the end of the story.
  4. Cyber media must continue efforts to verify such news. Once verification is obtained, the article must be updated and linked to the original version.

3. User-Generated Content (UGC)

  1. Cyber media must publish clear terms and conditions for UGC, aligned with the Press Law and the Journalists’ Code of Ethics.
  2. Users must register and log in before publishing UGC.
  3. During registration, users must agree that their content:
    • Does not contain lies, libel, sadistic or inappropriate material;
    • Does not promote hatred or violence based on ethnicity, religion, race, or societal group;
    • Does not discriminate based on gender or language;
    • Respects the dignity of vulnerable groups (the poor, disabled, etc.).
  4. Cyber media have the right to edit or delete UGC that violates these provisions.
  5. A clear complaint mechanism must be provided and easily accessible.
  6. Cyber media must act on reported violations within 48 hours, including editing, deleting, or correcting the UGC.
  7. Cyber media outlets that comply with these provisions are not liable for UGC violations; liability arises only if no corrective action is taken within the required timeframe.

4. Clarifications, Corrections, and the Right of Reply

  1. Clarifications, corrections, and the right of reply must be honored in compliance with the Press Law, the Journalists’ Code of Ethics, and Press Council regulations.
  2. Such responses must be linked directly to the relevant article and dated.
  3. If the corrected article is republished elsewhere:
    • The original publisher is responsible only for its own publication;
    • Other outlets that republish the article must also correct it;
    • If republishing outlets fail to do so, they bear full legal responsibility.
  4. Failure to honor the right of reply is subject to a fine of up to Rp 500,000,000 (five hundred million rupiah) under the Press Law.

5. Retraction of News

  1. Published articles cannot be withdrawn due to censorship, except in cases involving:
    • Ethnic, religious, racial, or societal prejudice and hatred;
    • Indecency;
    • The future of a child;
    • Traumatic experiences of victims;
    • Other considerations as determined by the Press Council.
  2. Other outlets must follow the retraction if they published the same news.
  3. Retractions must be accompanied by a public explanation of the reason.

6. Advertisements

  1. Cyber media must clearly distinguish between news and advertisements.
  2. Any paid content must be labeled as “advertorial,” “advertisement,” “ad,” “sponsored,” or similar wording.

Cyber media must respect copyright laws and regulations.

8. Inclusion of the Guidelines

Every cyber media outlet must display these Cyber Media News Coverage Guidelines prominently on its website.

9. Dispute Resolution

Any disputes related to the implementation of these Guidelines shall be resolved by the Press Council.

Jakarta, February 3, 2012

These guidelines were signed by the Press Council and the press community in Jakarta.

Source: Press Council