MEDIA REGULATORY AUTHORITIES AND PROTECTION OF MINORS www.coe.int/en/web/freedom-expression MEDIA REGULATORY AUTHORITIES AND PROTECTION OF MINORS April 2019 Media Regulatory Authorities and Protection of Minors This publication was produced with the financial support of the European Union. Its contents are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Union or the Council of Europe. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be translated, reproduced or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic (Internet, etc.) or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system, without the prior permission in writing from the Directorate of Communications (F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex or [email protected]). Prepress and Printing Dosije Studio, Belgrade Circulation 200 copies Council of Europe Publishing, F-67075 Strasbourg Cedex, http://book.coe.int, www.coe.int; © Council of Europe, April 2019, English publication © Cover photo: Image used under license from Shutterstock.com Table of Contents ACKNOWLEDGMENTS 7 1. INTRODUCTION 9 2. PROTECTION OF MINORS A TASK FOR ALL 11 3. PROTECTION OF MINORS AND THE ROLE OF NATIONAL REGULATORY AUTHORITIES 19 4. BEYOND REGULATION A WIDER APPROACH TO THE PROTECTION OF MINORS 37 5. RECOMMENDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS 39 ANNEXES 47 a) Annex 1: National Legal framework overviews 47 b) Annex 2: Cases related to protection of minors from South-East Europe 143 1. Cases related to broadcasting of content that might seriously or is likely to impair the physical, mental or moral development of minors; scheduling and labelling of content 143 2. Cases related to protection of minors’ dignity, privacy and identity 176 3. Cases related to reporting on criminal acts involving minors 190 4. Cases related to participation of minors in programmes 192 5. Cases related to commercial communications and minors 195 6. Cases related to elections and minors 199 c) Annex 3: Media and Information Literacy activities of National Regulatory Authorities taking part in JUFREX project 201 In brief: European Union and Council of Europe Joint Programme “Reinforcing Judicial Expertise on Freedom of Expression and the Media in South-East Europe (JUFREX)” 223 Page 3 “Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate.” Acknowledgments he Council of Europe wishes to extend its gratitude to National Regulatory Authorities in the field of electronic media from Albania, Bosnia and Her- Tzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo*1, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia for their involvement in producing this publication. Special recognition and gratitude go to Asja Rokša – Zubčević, Stanislav Bender and Jadranka Vojvodić for their per- sonal engagement in authoring large parts of and coordinating the entire process of producing this publication. Particular acknowledgement is extended to Maida Ćulahović and Robert Tomljenović for their valuable contribution and feedback. Also, gratitude for their involvement is expressed to other participants of Nation- al Regulatory Authorities: Emilija Janevska, Milan Todorović, Jelena Kolo, Sunčica Bakić, Eriona Rusmali and Mirand Tafarshiku. As with previous activities, the co- operation of National Regulatory Authorities from this region, which is character- ized by dedicated work, initiative, responsiveness and teamwork was shown again, coupled with a close and friendly relationship among colleagues, and has, yet again, resulted in creation of this valuable publication. Additionally, the Council of Europe wishes to extend its gratitude to Jean-François Furnémont, international media expert for his contribution and invaluable expertise which notably added additional value to the intended context of this publication. 1 Kosovo* – This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo Declaration of Independence. Page 7 1. Introduction ithin the Council of Europe and the European Union project “Rein- forcing Judicial Expertise on Freedom of Expression and the Media W in South-East Europe (JUFREX)”, several regional conferences were organised for media authorities on common topics and in order to address them jointly. These events, among other things, promoted regional cooperation in the ar- eas of hate speech and the protection of minors from potentially inappropriate and harmful media content. After a very successful preparation of the publication on hate speech: “Media reg- ulatory authorities and hate speech” (2017), the participating national regulatory bodies from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, Montenegro, North Mace- donia and Serbia, with guests from Croatia proposed a second publication focusing on an equally important topic related to the protection of minors from harmful content. It was agreed that this publication would include information about sig- nificant cases that were dealt with by the regulators in the region in relation to the protection of minors. It was also agreed that one part of the publication should be devoted to the role of National Regulatory Authorities in this respect, including their legal and regulatory mandates. As this proposal was accepted by the JUFREX team, this publication has been pre- pared, as a joint effort of representatives by the aforementioned National Regula- tory Authorities, including that from Croatia, which is not a direct participant of this project, but whose contributions are also very valuable from the perspective of proximity within the entire region and shared linguistic and cultural context. Experiences of different National Regulatory Authorities facilitate meaningful and thoughtful interaction among them through examination of an issue that requires collaborative action and exchanges of best practice. This publication is available in both electronic and print format, as well as in lan- guages of all JUFREX countries. Within the framework of the JUFREX project, it will be shared with the representatives of national judicial branches. Furthermore, it will be widely disseminated to various stakeholders, including parliaments, aca- demic institutions, self-regulatory bodies, journalists etc. The aim of this publication is, among other things, to contribute to a wider under- standing of the concept of protection of minors from harmful content in audio- visual media services, the role of National Regulatory Authorities in this area, the need to involve various stakeholders providing a safe environment, both offline and on-line, for the development of children and minors, and to offer a starting point in Page 9 terms of providing recommendations and mechanisms for the protection of minors, as well as to facilitate further efforts and initiatives. It should represent a useful and important tool in further activities of not only regulatory bodies, but within the discourse of wider societal stakeholders. Page 10 Media Regulatory Authorities and Protection of Minors 2. Protection of Minors – a task for all n today’s unprecedented connected world, the majority of information is delivered to us by the media, in many forms. Media help us learn, understand, stay con- Inected to other people and to the world in general, and engage in entertainment related experiences. Whether we like it or not, media have an extremely important role in the lives of our children. From birth, children are surrounded by the media – media and communication platforms and content are part of their environment, their family life, their fun and play time, their learning habits and social skill development. Extensive research on media and children show that the media can have both a positive and negative impact on their development. The term protection of minors in the con- text of media is concerned precisely with ensuring that harmful content in the media does not damage the physical and psychological development of children and minors. Since children are exposed to the media from the earliest age – beginning with the media consumption habits of parents, media behaviour of friends and peers, and school – the issue of the protection of minors from harmful media content needs to be addressed in all these different environments and therefore requires a wide, multidisciplinary approach and commitment. While it is the task of governments to create and ensure effective adoption and implementation of adequate laws and poli- cies, the task of protecting the best interests of the child should engage all members of society – within the family, in schools and other institutions that provide care, education and other services for children, in different communities and at all levels of administration. This chapter outlines some of the most important international legal instruments in this respect, serving as background and rationale for the need to implement meas- ures aimed at protecting minors, while at the same time safeguarding one of the fundamental human rights, the right to freedom of expression – both that of chil- dren and the general public. UNITED NATIONS The underlying document in the international legal system for the protection of the rights of the child is the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child2. As the first legally binding international instrument, it contains comprehensive standards for 2 https://www.ohchr.org/en/professionalinterest/pages/crc.aspx, accessed on 6 December 2018. Page 11 the protection of children’s rights and applies to all children, without discrimina- tion. The