THE LEGAL PROTECTION OF THE JOURNALIST PROFESSIONAL PRIVILEGE IN THE POLISH LEGAL ORDER SELECTED ISSUES

Abstract

In todays world, the social media play an important role in shaping reality. In democratic societies, they also act as a kind of controller of public life. The journalists primary task is to serve society and the state. Journalists have a special duty to act in accordance with professional ethics and the rules of social interaction, in line with the rules prescribed by law.In the performance of their profession, journalists enjoy legal protection designed to ensure that citizens may exercise their constitutional right of access to information and public criticism.However, the right to freedom of expression, including freedom to hold opinions and to receive and impart information and ideas without interference by public authority in accordancewith European standards, is not absolute in nature. An important factor contributing to the freedom of expression and independence of the press, which makes journalism to be perceived as a profession of public trust by the society, is the legal protection of the journalist professional privilege. This article attempts to present the current views of the doctrine and jurisprudence on the adopted principles of protection of the journalist privilege in the Polish legal order, with a particular emphasis put on inadmissibility in evidence arising from the legal standards defined in Article 180 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.