Azerbaijan, Baku, Feb. 14 / Trend E. Mehdiyev /
The presence of racket-journalism hampers the adoption of the law on "Defamation", the Press Council Board Member, "Azerbaijan" newspaper editor in chief, MP Bakhtiyar Sadikhov told Trend today.
"The presence of racket-journalism and unjust attacks of these newspapers, unfounded materials insulting honor and dignity on their pages and publication of these newspapers only to their own interests hamper the adoption of this law," Sadikhov said.
The Council has made a "black list" of these publications. The public must provide necessary support for this issue, Sadikhov said.
"It is difficult to solve this issue only through the Press Council," he said. If one eliminates the racket-journalism at least partially, there will be no special problems in the adoption of the law on Defamation."
He said that if racketeering journalism is removed, the council does not need additional powers.
"The press council is not the organization that closes the newspapers," he said. "It is an organization that helps them."
The most serious problems of the Azerbaijani press today are to increase the professionalism, to form the advertising market and to improve the material conditions of the press.