Accountability in the Spanish press: The publishing of replies

Abstract

Transparency and the safeguarding of press credibility are the basis of the so-called “media accountability.” This concept is closely linked to the importance of journalism in any democratic society, where it has been assigned the enormous responsibility of informing truthfully while giving a voice and listening to citizens. The right of reply must be understood as an accountability instrument that satisfies the audience’s right to participate in the communication process while reinforcing the credibility of the press itself, and, ultimately, trust, which is fundamental for the tacit agreement between the audience and the press in any democracy. In the field of communication there is no research on the importance of the right of reply as an accountability instrument and no one has addressed the way replies—sent to newspapers by those affected by the news—are published. The aim of this research is to verify whether the main Spanish newspapers fulfill their duty to publish replies, taking into consideration legal requirements as well as ethical guidelines established by professional self-regulation. To this end, the study examines whether replies have a regular or marginal presence in El País, El Mundo, La Vanguardia and ABC and identifies these newspapers’ criteria regarding legal requirements and minimum ethical standards when publishing replies.