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Chapter VII. Responsibility For Breaching The Legislation On Mass Media
Article 56. Placement of Responsibility
The founders, editorial offices and sections, distributors, state agencies, organizations, institutions, enterprises and public associations, officials, journalists, and the authors of disseminated reports and materials shall bear responsibility for breaching the legislation of the Russian Federation on mass media.
Article 57. Absolution from Responsibility
The editorial office, editor-in-chief and journalist shall bear no responsibility for the dissemination of information that does not conform to the reality and denigrates the honor an dignity of private citizens and organizations or infringes on the rights and lawful interests of individuals or represents an abuse of the freedom of mass communication and (or) the rights of the journalist:
1) if this information is available in binding reports;
2) if this information was received from news agencies;
3) if this information is contained in the reply to its inquiry either in the materials of the press-services of state organs, organizations, institutions, enterprises, and organs of public associations;
4) if this information is the literal reproduction of the fragments from the speeches of People's Deputies at the congresses and sessions of Soviets of People's Deputies, delegates of congress, conferences and plenary meetings of public associations, and also from the official statements by the office-bearers of state organs, organizations and public associations;
5) if this information is to be found in the author's works that go on air without preliminary recording or in the texts not subject to editing in keeping with the present Law;
6) if this information is the literal reproduction of reports and materials or of their fragments disseminated by another mass medium, which can be ascertained and called to account for a given breach of the legislation of the Russian Federation on mass media.
Article 58. Responsibility for the Infringement on the Freedom of Mass Communication
The infringement of the freedom of mass communication, that is, the prevention by individuals, officials of state organs and organizations, and public associations of the lawful activity of the founders, editorial offices, publishers and distributors of mass media products, and also by journalists by means of:
censorship;
interference in the activity and breach of the professional independence of the editorial office;
illegal termination or suspension of the functioning of a mass medium;
breach of the right of the editorial office in reply to the inquiry and receipt of information;
illegal seizure and also destruction of the print or part thereof;
compulsion of journalists to spread information or to refuse to spread it;
establishment of limitations on the contracts with journalists and transfer of information to them, except for the data comprising a state, commercial or any other specially law-protected secret;
breach of the rights of journalists established by the present Law;
- shall entail criminal, administrative, disciplinary or any other responsibility in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
The identification of organs, organizations, institutions or officials whose functions cover censorship of mass communication shall entail the immediate termination of their financing and their liquidation in the order prescribed by the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Article 59. Responsibility for Abusing the Freedom of Mass Communication
Abuses of the freedom of mass communication expressed in the breaches of the requirements of Article 4 of this Law shall entail criminal, administrative, disciplinary or any other responsibility in conformity with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Abuses of the rights of the journalists expressed in the breaches of the requirements of Article 50 and 51 of this Law shall entail criminal or disciplinary responsibility in accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation.
Article 60. Responsibility for Other Breaches of the Legislation on Mass Media
The following breaches of the legislation of the Russian Federation on mass media shall entail criminal, administrative, disciplinary or any other responsibility in keeping with the legislation of the Russian Federation:
the foundation of a mass medium through a false person, the receipt of information about registration or of a license for broadcasting by fraud, the hidden concession of a license, the evasion of the payment of a circulation or increased registration fee, and the illegal receipt of privileges instituted for specialized mass media;
the illegal manufacture of products of mass media without their registration or after the adoption of a decision on the termination or suspension of their activities, the evasion of re-registration, and also the presentation of requirements not provided for by the present Law during registration;
the prevention of the spread of mass media products put out on the lawful grounds, the introduction of illegal restrictions on the retail sale of the printing of a periodical publication'
the illegal dissemination of products of mass media without their registration or after the adoption of a decision on the termination or suspension of their activities, or without the permission to be published (or to go on air), the illegal commercial dissemination, and the broadcasting without a license or with the infringement of license terms;
the violation of the rules for spreading obligatory reports, advertisement, erotic publications and programmes;
the violation of the order of declaring imprints, submitting deposit copies of books and journals and of storing TV and radio broadcasting materials;
the creation of jamming that prevents the stable reception of radio and TV programmes.
Article 61. The Order of Appeal
In accordance with the civil and civil procedure legislation of the Russian Federation the following actions may be appealed with a court of law:
1) the refusal to register mass media, the violation by the registration body of the order and terms of registration and other illegal actions of the registration body;
2) the decision of the commission for TV and radio broadcasting on the cancellation of a license for broadcasting;
3) the refusal to submit requested information or the delay in its submission, or the non-observance of the requirements of Article 40 of this Law by officials, pres-service workers of state organs, organizations, institutions, enterprises, and the organs of public associations;
4) the refusal to accredit journalists, their deprivation of accreditation, and also the infringement of their rights.
If the court of law recognizes the appealed decision or action (inaction) as illegal, it shall pass its decision on the validity of a complaint and the duty to remove the committed infringement and compensate the losses, including the lost income incurred by the founder, editorial office or section, and the license holder.
Article 62. Compensation of Moral Damage
The moral (non-property) damage inflicted to a private citizen as a result of the spread by a mass medium of information running counter to the reality and denigrating the honor and dignity of the person or causing to him any other non-property damage shall be compensated by decision of a court of law by the mass medium, and also by the guilty officials and private citizens in the amount estimated by this court.
President of the Russian Federation
Boris Yeltsin
Moscow,
the House of Soviets of Russia
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