The National Press Council of Thailand (NPCT) has played down the withdrawal of Naewna newspaper from the council.
The council said the withdrawal will not affect efforts to promote better self-monitoring within media agencies.
In a statement, Naewna Newspaper Co, publisher of Naewna, said it decided to quit due to the council's inability to live up to the intentions declared when it was established in 1997. The newspaper's withdrawal was effective yesterday, according to the resignation letter.
NPCT chairman Chavarong Limpattamapanee said Naewna newspaper sees the NPCT's role differently from the more than 50 other newspapers, both in Bangkok and the provinces, which are determined to fulfil the body's goals and objectives.
"The NPCT saw to the setting up of an ethics committee and the upgrading of a sub-panel considering complaints to a panel on ethics and code of conduct in order to speed up consideration and to play an pro-active role in self-regulation," Mr Chavarong said.
"Moreover the council is also reviewing and improving the media's code of conduct, so it is a pity that Naewna newspaper has quit and is unable to carry on with the NPCT's intentions."
According to Naewna's resignation letter, publishers and editors of 25 Thai and English-language newspapers and 10 organisations related to news publications signed a memorandum of intentions on July 4, 1997 establishing the NPCT to promote freedom, journalistic responsibility and ethics in the news business.
As a member of the NPCT for the past 19 years, Naewna has strictly followed the code of conduct and the NPCT's constitution and fully cooperated in all of its activities, the letter said.
However, Naewna said the NPCT has not been able to live up to its aim of wanting newspapers to effectively keep each other under control in terms of ethics and professionalism.
Instead, some NPCT members display a lack of journalistic ethics and act as the tools of some people who do not wish the country well, which has led to the current conflict in society in which people are divided and newspapers take sides.
A source said Naewna has pulled out of the NPCT because it is unhappy with a recent move by the body and other media organisations that was deemed to protect biased journalism.
The press council is among five organisations criticising coup leader Prayut Chan-o-cha for granting legal immunity to the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission officials from criminal and civil lawsuits if they pull the plug on TV and radio stations deemed to be running inappropriate content.
"The press council and media organisations have acted strangely," said the source who is close to Naewna Co's management.
"They issued a statement to oppose actions against media outlets that distort facts and information. Some organisations also demanded the release of a reporter [in Ratchaburi] accused of violating the referendum law without charges. So we don't want to be part of it," the source said.
Chai Ratchawat, a political cartoonist, yesterday praised Naewna newspaper for its courage and branded other media organisations "paper tigers" for failing to enforce ethical standards.