JournalismPakistan.com
August 10, 2014

ISLAMABAD: Dawn has appointed an internal ombudsman to address any readers complaints, becoming only the second newspaper in the country to do so.

The newspaper reported Sunday it had named Muhammad Ali Siddiqui, one of its most senior staff members as the Dawn Readers' Editor (DRE).

"The idea is to attend to our readers' complaints and, to respond to them professionally in a manner that would address the matter that directly concerns the complainant," Dawn said.

The Express Tribune was the first newspaper in Pakistan to appoint Fakhuruddin G. Ebrahim as its ombudsman.

Dawn said its DRE will be the "investigating authority to whom all clarifications, contradictions, corrections and complaints will be referred, and it is he who will take note of any alleged violations of Dawn's code of ethics, which is based on the internationally recognized journalistic values and ethic, and which have always been upheld and guarded by Dawn's team of media persons."

The paper said the DRE will convey his observations/suggestions to the Editor for the final decision.