The annual report, opinion of the Auditor and the elected Ethics Council were approved at the meeting of the members of the Latvian Media Ethics Council

On March 24, the general meeting of the members of the Association "Latvian Media Ethics Council" took place, where the annual report of the second year of operation of the Association and the auditor's opinion were unanimously approved, as well as the Ethics Council of the Association was elected.  At the start of the third year of the Ethics Council, two new members have joined – Andris Saulītis (nominated by SLtd “Latvijas Televīzija”) and Aivars Pastalnieks (nominated by Ltd “ŽURNĀLS SANTA”). In addition to the newly elected members, Guntars Līcis (nominated by JSC “Latvijas Mediji”), Skaidrīte Lasmane (nominated by Latvian Journalist Association), Daiga Sproģe (nominated by JSC “DELFI”), Aleksandrs Mirlins (nominated by Latvian Press Publishers Association), Anda Rožukalne (nominated by Ltd “Novadu ziņas”), Andris Ķēniņš (nominated by the Latvian Broadcasting Association) and Baiba Liepiņa (nominated by Latvian Advertising Association) will continue to serve on the Ethics Council.

For the first time in the history of the Association, the composition of the Ethics Council has changed - seven candidates were nominated for five vacancies and two new members were elected. Before two recently elected members, Dita Deruma and Anna Peipina have served for the Ethics Council for two years, therefore the Association thanks both professionals for their contribution. The newly elected Ethics Council will continue to monitor the implementation of the principles and norms of the Association's Code of Ethics, review complaints about ethical violations of media, as well as assess possible violations of freedom of expression. The Statutes of Association also provide for the right of the Ethics Council to express an opinion on other issues of the field related to the threat to the media environment, editorial autonomy and media independence. The Ethics Council of the Association met for the first inaugural meeting of the third year of operation in April.

In two years, the Latvian Media Ethics Council has successfully implemented its goal - not only promoted the development of ethical media practice and self-regulation in the Latvian media space, but also within the framework of a cooperation agreement with the Ministry of Culture of Republic of Latvia conducted several studies on the situation of the media industry in Latvia and organized a number of educational events. During the two years of operation, the Association's Ethics Council has issued 32 opinions on the received complaints (including those still in the process), of which in 13 a violation of a clause of the Code of Ethics was found. Most frequently, the Ethics Council has received complaints about privacy violations, and lately, in large part of complaints, there are closely intertwined aspects of media ethics and legal violations.

Since the establishment of the Latvian Media Ethics Council in December 2018, the number of its members has doubled - currently 31 members are already bound by the Association's Code of Ethics. In addition, in accordance with Article 2.4 of the Code of Ethics, it is binding not only not only on the members of the Latvian Media Ethics Council, but also on persons who have confirmed their membership in written form. Till now 10 organizations have joined the Code of Ethics, as well as one associate member. This means that by combining the total number of members with companies that have joined the Association's Code of Ethics and their associated organizations, the Code of Ethics is binding on approximately 80 legal entities. This is a significant achievement that will help ensure ethical media practice in Latvia.

Taking into account epidemiological constraints on gathering and the increased compliance with security measures, the general meeting of members took place via online means of communication. Also during the announced state of emergency in Latvia,  the “Latvian Media Ethics Council” actively continues to implement its work remotely, as issues of media ethics and accuracy of information do not lose their relevance also in these times.

Information regarding the work of the Latvian Media Ethics Council has been prepared with financial support from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia within the framework of the participation agreement on the task of the State administration - strengthening the critical thinking of the public in relation to the content of the media and promoting media responsibility.