The ombudsman position (somewhere called readers' representative or editor), firstly invented in the New York World in the beginning of the 20th century, refers to the self-regulation within a news outlet, being it electronic or print media.
The role of the ombudsman varies from media to media, but generally the ombudsman liaises between media staff and media users, receives their comments and complaints and promotes dialogue between these two parties. Thus, the media maintain close contact with its audience and raise its own credibility. Example of well-functioning media ombudsman in South East Europe is Turkey (Sabah Daily and Star Daily). In Europe, as good models of media ombudsman can be sited Le Monde Daily (France), The Guardian (UK), Politiken (Denmark). There are though many others.
Turkey
United Kingdom
France