Training syllabus –In the UK there is the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ), which provides an internationally recognized and accredited training syllabus. There are also degrees, Masters degrees, post-graduate diplomas dedicated to the profession that are underwritten and accredited by various organizations depending on the particular media concerned (print, TV, online etc).
Regulatory body – Again, in the UK there is the Press Complaints Commission (PCC): An independent self-regulatory body which deals with complaints about the editorial content of newspapers and magazines (and their websites) – lifted from their website I confess.
Standard of Professional conduct – as set out by the PCC and enforced through the courts (in the UK – other countries have their own procedures).
“Honourable exceptions among the trade press that I've met” – exactly the point I was making about tarring all journos with the same brush. Generalizations don’t stand up as there is always an exception that renders them untrue.
To be fair, I’ve not heard of any journalists coming on to this forum and declaring themselves to be “heroic defenders of truth and democracy, moralisers and standard-setters.” That’s a label that you have given them yourself Yanchik.