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The rights to freedom of opinion and expression, and the right to access information, are enshrined in article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (1966). Taken together, these rights are considered as indispensable for full human development, enjoyment of other human rights, and for the principles of transparency and accountability. As such, they constitute one of the cornerstones of a democratic society (United Nations Human Rights Committee 2011).

SDG 16, to ‘promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels’, includes a specific target (16.10) to ‘ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements’ (for the function of the media in relation to the SDGs, see UNDP and UNESCO 2019).

16.10 Ensure public access to information and protect fundamental freedoms, in accordance with national legislation and international agreements


16.10.1 Number of verified cases of killing, kidnapping, enforced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture of journalists, associated media personnel, trade unionists and human rights advocates in the previous 12 months

16.10.2 Number of countries that adopt and implement constitutional, statutory and/or policy guarantees for public access to information 
 Art 19 UDHR

The fulfilment of those human rights and development goals implies a media free to carry out their functions to report on public issues and to inform public opinion. The public has a corresponding right to receive such media output. Therefore, states should take particular care to encourage an independent and diverse media to protect the rights of media users, including members of ethnic, linguistic or other minorities, to receive a wide range of information and ideas (United Nations Human Rights Committee 2011).

The European Court of Human Rights has stated that:

… the State, as the ultimate guarantor of pluralism, must ensure, through its law and practice, that the public has access through television and radio to impartial and accurate information and a range of opinion and comment, reflecting inter alia the diversity of political outlook within the country and that journalists and other professionals working in the audiovisual media are not prevented from imparting this information and comment.

(Manole and others v Moldova, 17 December 2009, § 107)

Article 9 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights and Article 13 of the American Convention on Human Rights also guarantee the right to freedom of expression and information. A number of UNESCO declarations (for example, the Windhoek Declaration of 1991) emphasise the importance of an independent and pluralistic media to promote those rights.

Finally, journalists’ responsibilities in promoting those rights are largely provided for by selfregulation and codes of media ethics adopted in countries all over the world. (See https://accountablejournalism.org/ethics-codes)




Additional resources

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