Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Sep 07, 2007
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Online edition of India's National Newspaper Friday, Sep 07, 2007 ePaper |
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Special Correspondent
Suggested framework of BRAI unacceptable to the Guild, says it’s a government body Wants the Newsbroadcasters Association of India and the Guild to draft the Content Code
NEW DELHI: The Editors Guild of India has rejected the Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill in its present form on the premise that it would give the government “enormous control and clout over news and current affairs channels.” Appreciating the need for responsible reporting, the Guild in a statement issued on Thursday said: “While media’s hands should not be tied behind its back by an oppressive legislative framework, the media must evolve and adhere to higher norms of responsibility and public decency.” This statement was issued after the Guild’s executive committee met last week to finalise its stand on the proposed Bill and Content Code. According to the Guild, the provisions of the Bill were such that it could be misused by the government. Calling for a wide-ranging national debate on the issue, it said the proposed Broadcasting Regulatory Authority of India (BRAI) was nothing but a government body as the media had no say in the selection of its members. As such, the suggested framework of BRAI was unacceptable to the Guild. Instead, it suggested the Press Council of India model for BRAI as a majority of its members are elected by media organisations and others are from the civil society. Conceding the need for a Content Code for the electronic media given its reach and influence, the Guild was of the view that it should be drafted by the Newsbroadcasters Association of India and the Guild with inputs from civil society representatives. It would be open to the government to have a say in the drafting process also. In the Guild’s opinion, the Content Code should be self-regulatory and each channel must appoint an independent ombudsman to monitor adherence to it. Another proposal that the Guild found unacceptable was the Public Service Broadcast Council which would dictate the public service content on news and current affairs channels. The proposed Council, it is feared, could become a channel for the government to introduce its own programming through the backdoor. Serious implications, says IFJ
The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) on Thursday called for broader consultation on the proposed Broadcasting Services Regulation Bill, 2007. It has expressed deep reservations about the “Self-Regulation Guidelines for the Broadcasting Sector” as this “content code” will have serious implications for journalism. In its memorandum, the IFJ — taking note of earlier attempts at introducing a regulatory mechanism — said the Indian government was unlikely to get far with the Bill if it “continues to use the approval of the broadcast industry as the touchstone for assessing the worth of any legislation.” There was little public consultation on the issue, the memorandum said. Urging the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to realise that broadcast regulation was not just about the government and the industry but involved more stakeholders, the IFJ said the latest draft did not make the “slightest concession to public as opposed to political control of the broadcast spectrum.” The process proposed for appointing the Broadcast Regulatory Authority of India “is entirely political and involves little consultation with the public on a broader scale.” Content code
About the proposed content code, the IFJ said the remedy for damage or injustice resulting from the news and current affairs content on television “lies not in constraining the right to free speech, but in allowing it greater latitude;” particularly in a country where there were several avenues for redress and judicial remedy. In particular, the IFJ is opposed to Clause 14.4 in the content code which states “any infringement of privacy in the making of a news based/related programme should be with the person’s and/or organisation’s consent or be otherwise ‘warranted’.” This, according to the IFJ, is to “restrain public scrutiny of official malfeasance;” particularly sting operations which in recent years have exposed “shocking” instances of wrongdoing by leading politicians. Submitted with the endorsement of its affiliate — the National Union of Journalists (India) — and the support of the Delhi Union of Journalists and the Mumbai Union of Journalists, the IFJ has also made out a strong case for involving accredited bodies of working journalists in consultations. “Uncertain future”
After submitting the memorandum, IFJ director for Asia-Pacific Jacqueline Park said: “That its future is still uncertain speaks of a failure of consensus-building around the purported aims of broadcast law reform.”
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