A warning has been issued to "Space TV" channel
On October 21, 2025 the Audiovisual Council of the Republic of Azerbaijan held a meeting. During the meeting, the content of the "Banu" program of "Space TV” channel broadcast on October 08, 2025, between 22.06-23.09 was discussed. The program showed a wedding involving consanguineous marriage in one of the regions.
During the discussions, this episode was assessed in the context of recent legal reforms aimed at strengthening the family institution, promote family well-being, and protecting social values in Azerbaijan. Specifically, it was assessed in light of the amendments to the Family Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan that came into force on 1 July 2025, which prohibit marriages between relatives. According to Article 12.0.2-1 of the current Family Code, marriage between children of siblings who share a biological grandfather and/or grandmother is not allowed.
Experts of the Department of monitoring and analysis of audiovisual programs of the Audiovisual Council identified the fact of broadcasting a wedding ceremony of close relatives on "Space TV" channel. Subsequently, a info-request was sent to the channel for a detailed review of this issue. According to the official response, the wedding took place long before the legislative amendments came into force (the marriage was officially registered on March 6, 2025). However, due to a technical error by the channel's staff, the episode recorded a few months earlier was demonstrated in October.
During the meeting, it was agreed that the program broadcast on October 8, 2025 violated the aforementioned new legislative requirements. This was seen as a result of insufficient editorial control. Considering that the broadcaster admitted the fact of violation and took relevant action concerning the responsible staff member, the Audiovisual Council members decided to issue only a warning to "Space TV" channel.
The Audiovisual Council requires all broadcasters to comply with the legal requirements in their programs and emphasizes that monitoring and oversight measures will continue.
