This document discusses the role and practices of organizational ombudsmen in media houses. It defines an ombudsman as a neutral arbitrator who handles audience complaints and finds common solutions. Media ombudsmen specifically promote transparency and act as a liaison between the public and journalists. Their key duties include monitoring content for fairness, investigating complaints, and encouraging corrections. The concept originated in Sweden in 1809 and has since spread globally. Appointing ombudsmen helps ensure accountability and build trust between media organizations and their audiences. However, Nepal currently lacks strong mechanisms for public oversight of press standards.

1. Organizational Ombudsman Practices
in Media Houses
Siromani Dhungana
Lecturer (Journalism and Mass Communication)
Tribhuvan University
Email: meshiromani@gmail.com | siromanidhungana@gmail.com

2. What is an ombudsman?
• An ombudsman is, principally, a neutral and fair
arbitrator who handles complaints of audience
and tries to find a common way out. Government
agencies and private sector and other firms can
appoint ombudsman.
• According to Organization of News Ombudsmen,
the first ombudsman was appointed in 1809 in
Sweden to handle citizens’ complaints about the
government. The ombudsman is Scandinavian in
origin.

3. Media Ombudsmen
• The Media, or News, Ombudsman is familiar to many
people. The News Ombudsman’s primary objective is to
promote transparency within his or her news organization.
This Ombudsman can receive and investigate complaints
about published news items on behalf of members of the
public and then recommend the most suitable course of
action to resolve the issues raised. The News Ombudsman
is an independent officer acting in the best interests of
news consumers. He or she explains the roles and
obligations of journalism to the public and acts as a
mediator between the expectations of the public and the
responsibilities of journalists.
- From: International Ombudsman Association |
http://www.ombudsassociation.org/media/frequently-asked-questions

4. Ombudsman may be called as:
• Some newspapers use titles such as:
• Readers’ representative
• Readers’ advocate
• Public editor

5. Need of ombudsman in media
organizations
• To monitor accuracy, fairness and balance.
• To receive audience complaints
• To publish corrections and explanations of the
organization's media policy, if required
• To make news organization more accessible and
accountable to its audience
• To increase the awareness of professionalism of
journalism
• To enhance accountability of concerned news
organization

6. Primary Duties of Media
Ombudsman
• Work as a bridge between media house and audience
regarding published content
• Monitoring of news and feature columns, photography and
other graphic materials for fairness, accuracy and balance
• Ensuring accountable journalism
• Investigation of comments and complaints made by
audience and obtaining explanations from editors and
journalist for readers, viewers or listeners
• Encourage media houses to publish correction in case of
mistakes
• In some cases, ombudsman write article dealing with issues
of broad public interest, or with specific grievance

7. Evolution of Concept of
Ombudsman
• The concept was in place much earlier in Japan. The Asahi Shimbun in Tokyo
established a committee in 1922 to receive and investigate reader complaints.
Another mass circulation Tokyo paper, The Yomiuri Shimbun, set up a staff
committee in 1938 to monitor the paper’s quality.
• In 1951 this group became an ombudsman committee which today hears
readers’ complaints about the paper and which meets daily with editors. News
ombudsmen today are found throughout North and South America, Europe,
and parts of the Middle East and Asia.
• The first newspaper ombudsman in the U.S. was appointed in June 1967 in
Louisville, Kentucky, to serve readers of The Courier-Journal and The Louisville
Times.
• The first Canadian appointment — at The Toronto Star — was in 1972.
-From: Organization of News Ombudsmen (ONO)

8. Connection between Ombudsman
and Audience
• Media has social responsibility and it should be more
responsible to play the role of 'public sphere'
• Media organization should appoint ombudsman to
ensure good of the society because 'media is not just
other business'
• An ombudsman helps to explain the news-gathering
process to general public
• Pubic can express their dissatisfaction and discontent
to the media through ombudsman
• Ombudsman bridges gap between public and media
• Ombudsman is important for maintain notion of
accountability in media

9. Ombudsman and Accountability
Three types of accountability:
• Assigned Accountability
• Contracted Accountability
• Self-imposed Accountability
• Wisdom Tettey has distinguished between assigned
accountability, where legal and formal regulatory systems
define what are acceptable and unacceptable behaviour for
the media, and contracted accountability, where a contract
is entered into between the media and its public regarding
media performance, and self-imposed accountability, and
where the media evolve and enforce standards of
behaviour voluntarily.
- From: UNESCO

10. Ombudsman in Nepal
• In Nepal, there is no such mechanism to address
readers' concerns about newspapers straying away
from truth.
• Press Council Nepal is a watchdog mechanism of media
sector but its independence has always been
questioned due to political interferences and other
systematic problems.
• After emergence of Television channels, importance of
ombudsman has further been realized. Many in the
audience feel that weekly newspapers and most of the
TV channel have lost their sense of social responsibility.

11. Media should be liable
• Media provides much of our understanding. Now
media has become part of everyday life of
people. So it is audience's right to put their
queries because media should be liable to the
audience. Public trust is an important factor for
media to gain reputation. Media should not
deviate from the principle of objective reportage.
In Nepal, press freedom is guaranteed in
constitution but fairness is always in question and
it should be addressed through self-imposed
watchdog mechanism like ombudsman

12. Conclusion
• News media should be truthful, accurate, fair,
objective and relevant. The most beautiful
regulation of media industry is self-regulation
and creating a mechanism for ombudsmen is a
step toward that direction.

13. Thank You
Prepared by
Siromani Dhungana
Researcher, Journalist & Media Educator
Kathmandu, Nepal
Email: meshiromani@gmail.com | siromanidhungana@gmail.com
(Kathmandu-based copy editor Amendra Pokhrel has provided assistance to prepare the paper.
He can be contacted at: amendrapokharel@gmail.com )