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Chapter IV. Relations Of Mass Media With Private Citizens And Organizations
Article 38. The Right to Information
Through mass media private citizens shall have the right to the operative receipt of authentic information about the activities of state organs and organizations, public associations and their officials. State organs and organizations, public associations and their officials shall submit information about their activities to mass media in reply to the inquiries of editorial offices or broadcasting sections, and also by holding press conferences, circulating reference and statistical materials and other forms.
Article 39. Information Inquiry
The editorial office or broadcasting section shall have the right to request information about the activities of state organs and organizations, public associations and their officials. The request for information is possible both in oral and written form. This information shall be submitted by the heads of said organs, organizations and associations, their deputies, press service workers or other persons authorized within their terms of reference.
Article 40. Refusal to Submit Information and Delayed Information
Refusal to submit requested information is possible if only the latter contains the data comprising a state, commercial or any other secret specially protected by the law. A notification about the refusal shall be handed over to the representative of an editorial office within three days since the day of the receipt of the inquiry about said information. The notification shall indicate:
1) the reasons why requested information can not be separated from the information comprising a specially law-protected secret;
2) the official who refuses to submit information;
3) the date of decision-taking on the refusal.
A delay in submitting requested information is possible, if the required data cannot be presented within seven days. A notification about the delay shall be handed over to the representative of an editorial office within three days since the day of receipt of the written inquiry of information.
The notification shall indicate:
1) the reasons why the requested information cannot be presented within seven days;
2) the date on which requested information will be presented;
3) the official who fixed the delay;
4) the date of decision-taking on the refusal.
Article 41. Confidential Information
The editorial office shall not have the right to divulge in distributed reports and materials the information submitted by a private citizen with the proviso of keeping this information secret.
The editorial office shall be obliged to keep the source of information secret and shall not have the right to name the person who has submitted information with the proviso of non-divulgence of his name, except for the case when the corresponding demand came from a court of law in connection with case it disposes of.
Article 42. Author's Works and Letters
The editorial office shall be obliged to observe the rights to the used works, including copyrights, the rights of publication and other rights to intellectual property. The author or any other person who possesses the right to a work may stipulate the special terms and character of using the work he presents to the editorial office.
The letter addressed to an editorial office may be used in reports and materials of the given mass medium, unless its meaning is distorted and the provisions of this Law are violated. The editorial office shall not be obliged to answer the letters sent by private citizens and to send these letters to the organs, organizations and officials which are competent to consider them.
No one has the right to oblige the editorial office to publish the work, letter or any other communication it has declined, unless otherwise provided for by law.
Article 43. The Right of Refutation
A private citizen or organization shall have the right to demand from the editorial office disproof of information that does not correspond to the reality and denigrates their honor and dignity and that was spread by the given mass medium. The same right shall belong to the lawful representatives of the person, if he himself or she herself has no opportunity of demanding refutation. If the editorial office of a mass medium does not possess evidence of the fact that the information it has disseminated corresponds to the reality, it shall be obliged to refute this information in the same mass medium.
If a private citizen or organization has submitted the text of refutation, this text shall be subject to dissemination provided it complies with the requirements of the present Law. The radio or television programme section, which is obliged to spread the refutation, may enable the person or the representative of the organization who demanded the refutation to read out his own text and transit it in transcription.
Article 44. The Order of Refutation
The refutation shall indicate which information does not correspond to the reality, when and how it was spread by the given mass medium.
Refutation published in a periodical printed publication shall be set up with the same type and featured under the heading «Disproof as a rule, in the same place where the refuted report or material is placed.
Over radio and television the refutation shall be transmitted at the same time of a day and, as a rule, in the same broadcast that the refuted report or material is transmitted.
The scope of refutation may not exceed twice as much the scope of the reflected fragment of the report or material. It shall not be demanded that the text of the refutation be shorter than one standard page of the typewritten text. The refutation transmitted over radio or television shall not take up less airtime than is required for the announcer to read out one standard page of the typewritten text.
The refutation shall follow:
1) in mass media that are to be published or go on air at least one time in a week during ten days since the receipt of the demand about the refutation or of its text;
2) in other mass media, in the prepared or in the text planned issue.
During one month since the day of receipt of the demand for refutation or its text the editorial office shall be obliged to notify in written form the interested person or organization about the supposed time-limit of the dissemination of the refutation or about the refusal of its spread with the indication of the grounds for the refusal.
Article 45. Grounds for the Refusal of Refutation
The refutation may be refused, if the respective demand or the submitted text of the refutation:
1) represents the abuse of the freedom of mass communication in the sense of the first part of Article 4 of the present Law;
2) contradicts the court's decision that has entered into legal force;
3) is anonymous.
The refutation may be denied:
1) if somebody disproves the information that has been disproved by the given mass medium;
2) if the demand for refutation or the submitted text was received by the editorial office upon the expiration of one year since the day of the spread of the refuted information by the given mass medium
The refusal of refutation or the infringement of the order established by the present Law may be appealed against with a court law during one year since the day of the spread of the refuted information in accordance with the civil procedure legislation of the Russian Federation.
Article 46. The Right to Answer
A private citizen or organization, in respect of whom a mass medium has spread information that runs counter to the reality or impinges on the rights and lawful interests of the citizen, shall have the right to give the answer (commentary or retort) in the same mass medium.
The rules, contained in Articles 43-45 of the present Law shall be applicable to the answer or refusal to this reply.
The answer to the reply shall be featured at least in the next issue of a mass medium. This rule shall not extend to editorial commentaries.
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