Mics-Media.pdf

8/17/2019 Mics-Media.pdf

1/20

www.iasscore.in

1

tes

C ntents

• Supreme Court's Verdict on Government Funded Advertisements

• Role of Media in Disaster Management - (Nepal's Earthquake Coverage by Indian Media)

• Social Media

• Regulation of Media

• Regulation of Cinema

• Freedom of Press

www.iasscore.in

URRENT AFFAIRS

Media


2/20

www.iasscore.in

2

tes


3/20

www.iasscore.in

3

tesSupreme Court’s Verdict on Government Funded

Advertisements

About the verdict1. On May 13, 2015, SC in a landmark judgment issued guidelines on

government funded advertisements.

2. Its guidelines are

Purpose of Government ad SC Guideline

1. Highlighting end of a Permissible, a s it keeps citizengovernment’s fixed tenure informed

2. Announcing projects, policies Permissible, a s it keeps citizenand achievements informed

3. Commemorating birth and Permissible if issued in memory of greatdeath anniversaries personalities, Not permissible if

government departments issue multipleadvertisements

4. Marking milestones of Not permissible, glory should beinstitutions earned

5. Publishing photographs of Not permissible, such photos divert political leaders or prominent attention from the policy of the persons government, unnecessarily associate an

individual with a government project andpave the way for cultivating a “personalitycult”.Exception to this rule – the photosof only three constitutional authorities – President, PM and Chief Justice of India- can be used in such ads provided they

personally clear it - thus, in a way, makingthem also accountable for the publication.

3. Other Directions

a. Ombudsman – SC directed the government to appoint a 3 member ombudsman body of persons with impeachable integrity to monitor

and redress violations of the above guidelines.

b. Don’t patronize – verdict also mentioned that the government neednot patronize media houses especially during elections.

4. Arguments sighteds

a. It will avoid misuse of public funds to favor ruling political parties.Or in its own word “taxpayers’ money cannot be spent to build“personality cults” of political leaders.

b. Not a day goes by without government ad or other being publishedto coincide with some event or occasion.

c. There is a difference between government messaging and politicallymotivated ads.

d. It is important towards building accountability in the expenditure of taxpayers money.


4/20

www.iasscore.in

4

tes

5. Background – N.S. Madhava Menon commission

a. In 2003, NGOs Common Cause and center for public interest

litigation filed a PIL (in the background of huge government

expneiture on its India shining campaign) arguing that ruling party

leaders and ministers were taking undue advantage at public expenses.

b. In this background SC, in April 2014 formed committee led by

noted legal academcian N.S. Madhava Menon on introducing checks

on government-funded ads. So this SC verdict is on the basis of a

series of recommendations given by Madhava Menon panel.

c. However SC modifies the recommendation on following counts

Menon Panel SC Verdict in may 2015

1. Makes an exemption for Makes an exception – pictures of PM,

pictures of PM, president, President and CJI can be used or providedCJI as well as CM and

governors

2. No ads should be allowed There was no need for a curb on

on election evening. government advertisemnt on election eve

provided the advertisement serves the

public interest and facilitates dissemination

of information.

3. There should be a No need for a performance audit on such

performance audit on government advertisement.

government advertisement.Analysis

1. Positives

a. Judgment was welcomes by common cause sighting above mentioned

ground.

b. It also welcomed the setting up of an ombudsman which it said has

potential to become a powerful body like ECI.

c. Political leaders take credit for all sorts of successes, from submarine

launches to space missions, which generally owe to the industry of

other people.

d. Unfortunately, government advertising tends to visually associate

schemes and benefits with political individuals who may not have

played a crucial role in bringing them to fruition.

2. Criticism of the Judgement

a. First, why should the exercise of “democratic wisdom” lead to the

appointment of a committee by the Supreme Court? And how is the

court to determine its membership? Wouldn’t referring the matter to

the Law Commission, the Press Council of India or even the National

Human Rights Commission have been a better option? The courthas relied on their wisdom in the past; why not now?

b. Second, the report submitted by the committee is extremely laconic.

There is mention of consultation with the affected interests, but


5/20

www.iasscore.in

5

tes

there are no details. Indeed, the 2015 judgment holds up only a few

of its suggestions, leaving the rest to eventual adoption by the state.

The committee is economical with reasoning. So it sculpts the

guideline that photographs of only the president, prime minister or

chief minister should be used, without explaining why at all.

c. Third, the photos judgment inexplicably narrows this down to the

three dignitaries earlier mentioned. The state of Bihar (it is

inexplicable why other states have not made any intervention) argued,

to no avail, as it turns out, that the list should also include governors

and chief ministers. The court explicitly says: “Photograph have the

potential of developing the personality cult and the image of a one

or a few individuals which is a direct antithesis of democratic

functioning”. Everyone is averse to a “personality cult” but no

evidence has been made available to prove that result.

d. Moreover, the court implicitly regards pictorial depiction of governors,chief ministers, ministers and others as examples of surrogate

advertising. The government regulates this: its latest pronouncement

is an order that the expenditure on advertising for the product should

not be disproportionate to the actual sales turnover of the product.

Are government advertisements “products” to be regulated the same

way as alcohol, tobacco and other addictive substances? Is the

“personality cult” to be treated on par with substance abuse? Where

is the evidence that such a cult is, potentially or actually, being

fostered by the present practice of government advertising? If it is,

perhaps all photos should be banned and advertisements should only

contain narrative prose. This bias against visual culture is altogether misplaced and should be abandoned. Besides, if we are serious about

curbing the “personality cult”, we should address and attack its root

causes, not the outward symptoms.

e. Fourth, the court insists that no centenary event of a high court

should be considered for state advertising. Such ceremonies do not

“serve any purpose and must be avoided. Institutions need not be

glorified”. Rather, they “must earn glory by contribution and work”.

While the principle is unexceptionable in spirit, the actual ban is not.

Further, no “contribution and work” can reasonably be expected of

persons who are dead. Yet the court only allows commemoration of

“the anniversaries of the few acknowledged and undisputed publicfigures whose contribution to the national cause cannot raise any

dispute or debate”. Suppose a situation arises where certain groups

or even political parties raise a debate over a national figure. Would

the judicial guidelines then apply?

f. Fifth, aside from judicial insistence on norms of equality in the

award of government advertisements, there is no discussion about

whether the guidelines may affect the freedom of the media. The

news and views content of the media may not be directly affected

but indirect effects will be felt. Pictorial government advertising is a

major source of revenue and the constitutional guarantee of freedom

of the press includes the right to receive state advertisements.Removal or reduction in pictorial content may have a long-term

adverse impact on media revenues. This will have a bearing on the

freedom of the press, especially small and medium enterprises. But

the photos judgment does not consider the guidelines to be in violation


6/20

www.iasscore.in

6

tes

of the freedom of speech and expression, on which only reasonable

restrictions may be legislated by Parliament.

Role of Media in Disaster Management – (Nepal’s

Earthquake Coverage by Indian Media)1. Role of the media during disasters

a. Before a catastrophe, they can warn a population and prepare it.

b. During disaster

i. During the disaster, they can be effective conduits of

information about help lines, aid-distribution camps, emergency

phone numbers, or the kind of supplies required.

ii. They can help scotch rumours and prevent panic by quickly

disseminating the right facts and figures.

iii. Their coverage helps mobilise help from outside the disaster

area, in the form of money, supplies and volunteers.

iv. And finally, the focus of the media on a disaster helps increase

its visibility, thus forcing governments to upgrade it on their

agenda.

c. Afterwards, with continued reportage, they can ensure that no survivor is forgotten or left out of the aid network.

2. During the coverage of Nepal’s earthquake by Indian media in April 2015,hashtag #GoBackIndianMedia was trending on Twitter. The Indian mediacannot understand why Nepalis are angry at it. Should they not be gratefulfor Indian help? In any case, they were simply doing their job as journalists.

3. That is precisely what members of the media need to ask themselves: Isthis really journalism?

a. Major news organisations around the world put their reporters througha special training to prepare them for coverage of conflict and disasters.At the very last, reporters are briefed on the do’s and don’ts in suchsituations. In India, training or briefings by seniors are rare. As a result, young or inadequately trained reporters are let loose in

situations where they are pushed to get exclusives. Not surprisingly,they resort to the obvious and cross form of reporting perfected bysome Indian television channels: walk up to a victim and ask, “Howare you feeling?”

b. In disasters, such as the Nepal earthquake, journalists inevitably turnto official agencies providing relief and rescue operations to gainaccess to disaster-affected areas. But that access should be one partof the story, not the whole of it. Yet, in the initial days after theNepal earthquake, for much of the Indian media, the Indiangovernment’s assistance became the only story.

c. As journalists hopped on to helicopters and gave viewers an aerialview of the devastated landscape, they forgot a basic tenet of

journalism that journalists are also expected to provide the worm’s-

eye view, the ground reportage that involves engaging with people.

Only then do you get the stories, reported by many other news


7/20

www.iasscore.in

7

tes

outlets, of the way Nepalis helped each other in the absence of

organised relief and rescue in the immediate aftermath, how people

used to political turmoil and poor governance did not wait around for

help, and how even a small local army and police force went to

work.

d. Also, it was not just what the Indian media did not report that raised

the ire of Nepalis, it is the way it reported what it did see and the

pro-Indian government spin given to many such accounts. Embedding

yourself with an official agency should not turn journalists into

public relations agents. Yet, this happens all too often and was

evident in full colour in the coverage of Nepal.

e. In fact, the Indian media’s lack of sensitivity in its coverage of the

Nepal disaster comes as no surprise. Ask people in Kashmir, or the

North East. The answer is the same: the Indian media generallycomes across as insensitive, caring only about the story and not

about the people in the story. Journalists sometimes forget that they

are human beings first and journalists second. You cannot demand

that distressed and suffering people speak to you without figuring

out a way of also helping them. That is not journalism; it is

voyeurism.

f. It is undeniably an age of advertised charity but the gloating does

hurt the recipients of your generosity.

g. The anger in Nepal has grown to include criticism for the Indian Air

Force (IAF) pilots for making it a priority to carry Indian journalistsand allegedly ignoring the advice of local government officials. Also,

when rescue choppers landed, survivors were dismayed to find TV

crews taking up space they believed should have been left for relief

material. In a disaster, relief must take primacy over media privilege.

Indeed, it must be seen to take precedence.

4. Comaprison with chinese coverage

a. China Central Television’s coverage of the Nepal disaster, was like

most of its coverage — prosaic and staid. Its English language website

has a tiny section with a few stories on China’s aid effort in

Nepal.China Daily and its weekly Asia edition did more to publicise

the Chinese aid efforts, but it was a shrewdly restrained exercise.

Indian relief and rescue teams had arrived much before the Chinese

teams in Nepal.

5. Reasons

a. The same underlying reason i.e. high TRP and high profits; breaking

news syndrome (to be the 1st one to report the coverage); lack of

training in dealing with these situations and above all decline of

ethics.

b. The self-congratulatory tone of the Indian relief efforts in Nepal waspartly set by the Indian government itself. Prime Minister NarendraModi told journalists in New Delhi that Nepal’s Prime Minister

Sushil Koirala, who was visiting Thailand at the time of theearthquake, learnt about the quake from Mr. Modi’s tweet. Four days


8/20

www.iasscore.in

8

tes

after the earthquake, a Minister of the Modi government spoke inParliament about India’s emergence as a leading nation in disaster

response. The feverishness to advertise the aid for Nepal was alsofound on the social media accounts of various government agencies.

c. The projection of the Indian efforts in Nepal certainly had the subtextof India-China competition for influence over the country.

6. Consequence

a. This led to the intensely hostile reactions from the Nepalese.

b. And it worsened the already worsened relations between the 2 sides.

7. Way forward

a. Media should realize that it is to wring an emotional response fromaudiences, they must refrain from sticking microphones in the faces

of survivors who may have just lost everything. ‘People’s right toknow’ just does not apply here. Nobody has a right to know howmuch anyone else is grieving. Instead, it is the survivor who has anabsolute right to privacy. The only right way to get a human angle

to the reporting is to ask for consent, make a full disclosure of howand where it will be aired, keep the questions brief, and not push for emotional outbursts.

b. It is better that television revisits the basic rules of journalistic ethicsduring disaster reporting.

c. Ethical journalism must place humanity above professional urgency.

Social Media

Context

1. Indian PM’s active presence on social media, section 66A, his debut on

chinese social media weibo.

2. Comment by PM Modi with respect to social media on his visit to USA–

a. The status that now matters is not whether you are awake or asleep,

but whether you are online or offline.

b. Google today has made teachers less awe-inspiring and grandparents

more idle. Twitter has turned everyone into a reporter. The traffic

lights that need to work the best are on Cisco routers.

What is social media?

• Broadly social media can be defined as “any web or mobile based platform

that enables an individual or agency to 1) communicate interactively and

2) enables them to exchange, modify user generated content.”

• How is it different from traditional media ?

• Think of regular media as a one-way street where you can read a

newspaper or listen to a report on television, but you have very

limited ability to give your thoughts on the matter.Social media, on

the other hand, is a two-way street that gives you the ability to

communicate too.


9/20

www.iasscore.in

9

tes

• Social media differentiates from traditional/industrial media in many

aspects such as quality , reach, frequency, usability, immediacy and

permanence.

• Media is an instrument on communication, like a newspaper or aradio, so social media would be a social instrument of communication.

Types of Social Media

Social media in recent times has become synonymous with Social Networking

sites such as facebook or micro-Blogging sites such as Twitter. But it is more

than that.

Indian Scneario of Social Media Usage

1. IAMAI-IMRB report was released in July 2015 on social media usage in

India.

• Collaborative projects enable the joint and simultaneous, creation of

content by many end-users

• The broad types include the following types

• Wikis

• Social bookmarking applications

• Wikis –

• Wiki is a collaborative website which allow users to add, remove,and change text-based content.

• While single page is referred to as “wiki page” the entire related

content on that topic is called a “Wiki”.

• Wikipedia is the pioneering site of this type of platform. It is an

online encyclopedia which is available in more than 230 different

languages “Wiki” is a Hawaiian word meaning “fast” or “quick”.

• What is if the main objective of content communities is the sharing of

media content between users. (media content)

• Examples for uploading & sharing of the following medias

• Videos - youtube

• Documents - Scribd, docstoc

• Slides Slide - Share

• Pictures flickr, picasa

• Difference between collaborative projects and content communities

• In collaborative projects users come together to create content

• But in content communities a single user uploads the content and

shares it with other.

• A blog is a descriptive/informative website usually maintained by

individual users and may contain text, photos and links to other web

1. Collabratative projects

(wikis)

2. Content communities

3. Blog


10/20

www.iasscore.in

10

tes

2. Its findings:

a. Across India, there are 143 million users of social media.

b. Urban areas witnessed a growth of 35 per cent with 118 millionusers as of April 2015.

c. On the other hand, the number for rural India stood at 25 million,

up from close to 12 million last year, showing a growth of 100 per

cent. Use of social media doubles in rural India.

d. Facebook emerged the leading social media website with 96 per cent

of urban users accessing it, followed by Google Plus (61 per cent),

Twitter (43 per cent) and LinkedIn (24 per cent). The largest segment

of users was college-going students (34 per cent), followed by young

men (27 per cent), the report said. Schoolchildren constitute 12 per

cent.

e. Accessing social media is one of the key reasons for people to access

the Internet. In fact, for many people accessing the Internet for the

first time, social media was the reason they embraced Internet.

4. Microblog

5. Social networking

site

sites. The main interactive feature of Blogs is the ability of readers to leave

comments and the comment trail can be followed.

• It consists of discrete entries (“posts”) usually displayed in reverse

chronological order (the most recent post appears first).

• Examples Blogger (of google), wordpress are the famous bloghosting service

that allows user to create blogs.

• Microblogging is a broadcast medium in the form of blogging.

• Micro-blogging is a web service that allows the subscriber to broadcast short

messages/ image and video links to other subscribers of the service. i.e

contacting an entre groups of people with a short message.

• A microblog differs from a traditional blog in that its content is typically

smaller in both actual and aggregate file size (e.g in twitter the max character

limit is 140). Whereras bloging is like writing an whole article, micrbloggingmeans a small update.

• Example Twitter (twitter is a combination of both, a microblogas well as

social networking site)

• A social networking service is an online service, platform, or site that focuses

on facilitating the building of social networks or social relations among people

who, for example, share interests, activities, backgrounds, or real-life

connections.

• It often offers various facilities like making their profile, chat, instant

messaging, photo sharing, updates, etc.• Currently, social networking sites are the most prominent version of social

media.

• Examples FaceBook, orkut, google+, myspace are some examples of general

social networking site. Renren Network is the Chinese facebook. Linkedin is

more of a business networking site


11/20

www.iasscore.in

11

tes

Reason for its rise – (its advantage over Traditional Media; why even

Governments across the World are using it)

1. Man is a social animal

a. As we know that man is a social animal so he wants to stay in touchwith others, wants to be accepted in society, wants to be ‘liked’ by

others, wants to share things with others.

b. Facebook was founded by Mark Zuckerberg to stay in touch with his

fellow students from Harvard University.

2. Enormous reach

a. Social media have emerged as a powerful platform for forming an

opinion as well as generating mass support.

b. These sites offer an opportunity to reach out this audience at a key

stroke. Many of these facilitate access through mobile devices andwith nearly 900 million mobile users, it offers an unprecedented

outreach.

3. Real Time engagement

a. Social Media releases the shackles of time and place for engagement.They can connect policy makers to citizens in real time. (i.e. withoutany delay)

b. In recent Libyan and middle east crisis, Ministry of External Affairsused social media platforms such as Twitter to assist in locating andevacuating Indian Citizens from these locations.

4. Real inclusion (Individual Interaction)

a. In tradition forms of media, interaction with individual user is either not possible or is very limited. Social Media platform offers theability to connect with each and every individual.

b. Such an interaction also enables the marginalised to participate indiscussions and present their point of view, thereby improving thepolitical position of marginalized or vulnerable groups, such as women,youth, and minorities that are often not taken into consideration. Itis specifically useful when seeking feedback on services rendered.

5. Citizen empowerment (alongwith bad image of traditional media)

a. Due to above reasons and also as we know that print media andelectronic media is being dominated by few group. With ‘paid news’and other ills making the media vulnerable to state and corporatecontrol, social networking sites are a countervailing force for ordinarycitizens.

b. But in social media citizens can dessimate information and news andthis is real citizen empowerment.

c. Radia tapes controversy broke out in nov 2010 by open magazine.Nowinitially there was complete blackout of the Nira Radia tapes by theentire broadcast media and most of the major English newspapers.Thenews gained prominence following sustained pressure on socialnetworking sites Twitter and Facebook against an attempted blackout orchestrated by many prominent Indian TV channels andnewspapers.


12/20

www.iasscore.in

12

tes

6. Managing Perceptions, improving its image

a. One of the big challenges for government is to avoid propagation of

unverified facts and frivolous misleading rumours with respect to

government policies. Government must have presence on theseplatforms to counter such perceptions to present the facts to enable

informed opinion making by the populace.

b. Thus it should use it for improving its image at home and improving

the image of the nation worldwide.

Areas where it is being used

1. Used by administration and government

a. Election campaigning – Now elections campaigning’s are held not

only on streets but also on social media as we saw in Obama’s

presidential bid, 2014 general elections in India. This is also creating

problems as even in last 2 days election campaigning is held on social

media which is outside the MCC.

b. Spreading awareness about social and political issues; it is used for

encouraging voter participation.

c. Policy making – Government is also using social media for seeking

inputs into policy making, In USA most state and federal agencies

use social media for either seeking expert opinion or creating/

influencing public opinion. Many agencies at federal level are also

using this platform to gauge public reactions on upcoming/proposedpolicy measures.

d. Foreign policy –Before his visit to China in 2015, PM Modi joined

Chinese social media platform Weibo to interact with the chinese

netizens. It is an important toll of foreign policy and soft power.

e. An important role in dealing with internal security challenges.

f. Two way communication: Many politicians and government officials

are active on social media. Ministers, politicians and governemnt are

using it for a two way communicato with people, civil society etc.

i. i.e. taking peoples view into consideration thus giving voice to

marginalized and taking their view into public opinion.

ii. And also communicating their view to people. PM Modi is an

active user of social media for several years now. From sharing

updates on working of the government, policy deliberations, his

own thoughts, greetings and replies to well-wishers, the Prime

Minister’s social media outreach has been lauded all over the

world.

g. Police

i. The Delhi Traffic Police has joined Facebook and Twitter to

ease handling of traffic related issues.

ii. The Indore Police Department has been using a blog, Twitter,


13/20

www.iasscore.in

13

tes

online and mobile complaint forms, a Google map of police

stations and a digital crime mapper to track criminal activities

in the region.

2. Generate public opinion

a. As the recent world events have demonstrated, social media have

emerged as a powerful platform for forming an opinion as well as

generating mass support.

b. Even governments are trying to influence people’s opinon by using

social media e.g. it is alleged that Isreal tried to update wikipedia

content as wikipedia is written by common people only…i.e. trying

to favour public opinion towards it.

3. Education

a. It has changed the way we do study i.e. we study from Wikipedia. b. Various blogs related to studies have been created.

c. Video tutorials – various professors have uploaded their video tutorials.

E.g. IGNOU has uploaded many video tutorials on youtube and

egyankosh.

4. News

a. Facebook and twitter have become a key source of news for many

users, as part of a dramatic shift in how people get information in the

digital age.

b. Even all print and electronic media are also accessingsocial media to

dessimate news. Remem timesnow, cnn-ibn, Rajdeep Sardesai, Barkha

Dutt….they all are on twitters for dessimating news.

5. Role in social movements, protest

a. Social media especially twitter and Facebook have played a very

important role in starting, and facilitating & coordinating of social

movement and organizing protests. i.e. leaders of movements telling

the people to assemble where and at what time through social media.

b. Arab spring (especially the 2010–2011 Tunisian revolution and

Egyptian Revolution of 2011 in these 2 even regimes changes

happened…so that’s the power of social media).

c. Then we saw its use in Anna Hazaare movements.

d. Reason is massive reach in a very short time and at a very cheap

cost.

6. Buisness promotion / e-commerce

a. In addition, there has been an increase in mobile social media which

has created new opportunities, in particulate for business, which are

able to utilize social media for marketing research, sales promotions,and customer relationship development among others.

b. Youtube is used for advertisement purpose.

7. With respect to system of kinship


14/20

www.iasscore.in

14

tes

a. Social media especially social networking sites have changed the way

we interact with our friends. It has changed the way people make

friends and communicate.

b. Now distance is no more a barrier as one can see the other.

Criticism of Social Media

1. Time consuming - wastage of time

a. Huge number of hours are spend on Social Media. And due to smart

phones now people can access them anywhere thus you don’t even

need a computer.

b. But the problem is that mostly of this is on social networking sites,

instead of informative blogs, Wikipedia etc. thus on social networking

sites people tend to waste time on Interactive Games/Applications

and then on viewing Photos.2. Health – Psychological, mental & physical

a. Mental health - Many surveys have revealed that said that compulsive

social networking has led to insomnia, depression, frustration,lack

of concentration, high level of anxiety, distracting activity, ignorance

and rudeness in their general behavior. People have become addicted

to it.

b. Physical health Due to too much spending eye sight gets weak.Also

due to internet addiction, no exercise thus no physical activity.

3. Social life

a. Real relationships are being replaced by virtual relationships.

b. Instead of improving it has even led to poor inter-personal relationships

as they tend to replace real-life social interactions with online social

media.

c. People get glued to the computers all the time and thus instead o

talking to their family members spend time on social networking

sites.

d. People portray to be different on networking sites than what they

really are.

e. Facebook and Divorce – Social networks, like Facebook, can have a

detrimental effect on marriages with users becoming worried about

their spouse’s contacts and relations with other people online, leading

to marital breakdown and divorce. In the UK, between 20 to 33

percent of divorce petitions cited Facebook as a cause according to

a study carried out in December 2009 by UK based divorce service

Divorce-Online and reported extensively in the media. For detail refer

criticism of facebook page on Wikipedia.

4. Affecting professional life

a. Over half of those interviewed in Delhi said that they indulge in

social networking at home, school, college and while they are at work

on their smart phones and excess of it has started telling on their


15/20

www.iasscore.in

15

tes

mental and physical health and even their professional and personal

lives.

5. It is also leading to cyberviolence against women i.e. online stalking,trolling of women and defaming their pictures.

6. Pornography

a. Various video sites are there on which porn cann be easily seen.thusporn addiction is on rise. And this has led to commodification of women and is also one of the many contributing factor for sexualharassment of women.

Social Media Retreat

1. Many respondents said they had deactivated or deleted their accounts

and profiles from these websites and it is no longer a craze among themwhile many others said they had started maintaining a low profile onsocial networks.

2. Although there are some million, billion registered users on these socialnetworking sites but many of them are not active. Some log in after manydays and even if log in daily then time spend on them is less.

WAY FORWARD : Solution, Recommendation, Conclusion

1. As we can see that Social media has tremendously changed the way welive. It has huge potential, advantages but has also some negative affects.

2. What should government do?

• Government should also use it to improve its governance. It hashuge potential so government should tap this resource. Governmentshould be active on it.

• But it should also be ensured that it should not be misused. Aspeople wont restraint, as self regulation wont work so governmentshould take steps to regulate it but should not censor it….onlydesireable criticism.

• In order to encourage and enable government agencies to make useof social media, a “Framework and Guidelines for use of SocialMedia by government agencies” was formulated. It was notified by

government in August 2012.3. What should people do?

• They should spend their time on more useful, informative socialmedia instead of wasting time on useless things (don’twrite useless

social networking sites josh mein varna poora answer tera galat ho jaayega).

• And they restraint themselves so as not to breach privacy of others,doing cyber crimes and posting objectionable content.

Regulation of Media

Context

In the background of events like Indian media’s coverage of nepal disaster and

Delhi CM’s idea to monitor and start proceeding against media, a debate over

regulation of media started.


16/20

www.iasscore.in

16

tes

a) Bodies

Facts –

1. It is free from government control; It has even its own funds for the performance

of its functions.

2. Statutory – Governed by the Press Council Act, 1978. It was first formed in1966 under the Press Council Act, 1965 but now governed by the Press CouncilAct, 1978. (i.e. earlier act stands repealed)

3. Tasks –

a. To ensure freedom of press – i.e. it receives and acts on complaintsreceived by the press for interference with its freedom by the government.

b. Improving ethics, standards of press – It receives complaints against thepress for violation of journalistic ethics. PCI has the power of giving warning,

admonishing, censuring or disapproving their conduct.

4. Membership chairman and 28 members.

a. Chairman - a retired or sitting judge of SC; he is selected by the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha and a member elected by the PCI.

b. Of the 28 members, 20 represent various segments of the press.

Limitations of PCI –

1. Domain – It only deals with print media. Electronic media and social media

have been excluded from its domain.2. Powers –At present it has no power to impose a fine, cancel licence etc; can only

admonish or censure. Its guidelines are not adhered.

1. Today we have 2 bodies for Regulation of news channels

a. NBA – News Broadcasters Association

b. BEA – Broadcast Editors Association

2. Both these bodies are private association i.e. journalists themselves have formedit to regulate media. And thus it’s a self regulatory mechanism.

3. Thus at present there is no body created by legislature or execurtive and thus inno way is involved in regulation of TV news channels.

4. As media itself is regulating it so how can you expect from them to act fairly.We saw in Radia tape controversy that there was a media blackout for it as nomedia house initially criticized Barkha Dutt and Vir Sanghvi.

5. Also like PCI, they don’t have much power.

PCI (Press council

of India)

Other Bodies

b) Overview

1. Present status – self regulations

a. At present PCI is the body for regulation of print media. Electronicmedia and social media are out of its domain.

b. Print media - PCI lays down guidelines for conduct of print media

(although not binding and if violated then there are no penal

provisions).


17/20

www.iasscore.in

17

tes

c. Electronic Media - With respect to it we have a News Broadcasting

Authority which performs the same function as by PCI.

d. Social media - With respect to it there is no such body but yes some

laws etc. are there by governemnt which regulates some aspects of

it.

e. Thus we can say that as there is no such strict law and the bodies

have weak power to enforce guidelines as there are no penal provisions

for its violation. Thus its more of a SELF–REGULATION.

2. Arguments in favor of self-regulation i.e. continue status quo -

a. We have A-19(1)(a) i.e. its our fundamental right

b. Media perform various functions like being the eyes and ears of people, keeping the govt accountable etc An thus media argues thatit can’t perform these functions unless it’s free.

c. And they allege that the real reason is that government wants todilute accountability.

d. Past record in not good as under guise of regulation it has tried tocensor the media e.g. during emergency we saw censorship of mediaand till now we were seeing the misuse of section 66A of IT Act.

e. Nehru commented that free media is better then regulated media.Censorship is no solution to stray incidences of journalisticirresponsibility. (but counter argument is that there are huge numbersof instances of irresponsibility).

3. Arguments in favor of regulation -

a. Freedom under A-19(1) (a) is not absolute. It is subjected to restrictions

under A-19(2).

b. Present system in weak with respect to all three.

i. In print media, PCI doesn’t have much power, the restrictions

are weak and not binding

ii. In electronic media, not under PCI, instead by NBA and BEA

which has no record of taking action against erring channels.

c. Principle of self regulation should apply to everyone. Should it ?

i. Former SC judge Katju said that if media says they will be self-

regulated then the same principle may apply for politicians and

bureaucrats too. “There has to be some regulatory mechanism.

You can’t say that you alone are saints and everyone else is a

sinner.

ii. “If a doctor or lawyer does something wrong, there are

provisions for them to be punished. Why not revoke the licences

of the media houses which breach the law? No one can be

unaccountable in a democracy. They are not above the law.

And if self-regulation actually works, why do we have laws

against theft, murder and rape? It is the same principle.”

iii. “If there can be medical council for doctors, bar council for

lawyers why aren’t the journalists open to regulation,”


18/20

www.iasscore.in

18

tes

d. Inidence - past record of media is worse than government e.g. paid

news, paid opinion polls, 26/11 attacks.

e. There is a difference between controlling and regulating. We are only

regulating.

f. Comment – as said by Markandey Katju “Freedom of press is not

an absolute right. The absolute right is the improvement in the

standard of living of the masses”.

4. Conclusion, solution –

a. Both are right, thus we need to balance out both things.

b. For this purpose we should create a strong independent strong body

i.e.

i. Independent means a body free from government control and.

ii. Strong means the body should have powers to punish and

penalize.

c. So either we can make improve PCI by making it more stronger or

create a new one.

d. Also this single body will cover both print media and TV media.

Regulation of Cinema

CBFC – Central Board of Film Certification

1. It is a statutory body under the I&B Ministry which Works in accordancewith the provisions of the Cinematograph Act, 1952, and Cinematograph(Certification) Rules, 1983.

2. Its task is to regulate the public exhibition of films to ensure healthyentertainment and education to the public.

3. Now it has been in news for its following actions like

a. CBFCs opposition to movie messenger of god sighting superstition,

b. Opposition to cuss words in AIB roast show on Youtube (an insultadult comedy) and.

c. Then Pahlaj Nihalani (newly appointed CBFC chief) releasing the listof 28 cuss words which devised by the Central Board of FilmCertification (CBFC) was leaked on social media.

4. Now these actions and overall functioning of the boards have been criticizedon following grounds –

a. Criticism of its functioning –

i. Officers of the organization are appointed by the Information& Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry instead by censor board. Peoplewith questionable credentials are appointed to these boards by

ministry without taking the Board’s recommendations intoaccount.

ii. Interference in its day to day functioning from all sorts of people like religious and fundamentalist groups and above all by government.


19/20

www.iasscore.in

19

tes

iii. Corruption – few years back Rakesh Kumar (the then CEO of

CBFC) was caught taking money for speedy clearance of movies.

b. About the vulgarity, nudity and cuss word.

i. If you trust a person’s wisdom by allowing him the right to

choose his/her parliamentarian, partner and career, then you

should also let them decide that which kind of movie they

want to watch.

ii. CBFC is acting like a moral policeman.

iii. They are just representing the society. Cuss words are quite

naturally spoken in States like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

iv. You cannot knock out a kissing scene or a cuss word without

looking into whether it is integral to the film. A scene or a

word may appear vulgar when taken out of context.

v. It is an assault on their creative freedom guaranteed by Article

19(1) of the Constitution.

vi. If this goes on then half of the theatre screen will carry statutory

warnings instead of showing the film.

vii. However, at the root of many controversies related to the

CBFC are the 19-point vague guidelines formulated by the I&B

Ministry in 1978 which an advisory panel uses while certifying

a film.

c. The movie MSG do promotes superstition but so do other masala

movies which are against all laws of gravity and logics.

5. In this background filmmakers increasingly demand that CBFC should be

made simply a certifying agency with no powers to impose cuts.

6. Mudgal committee’s recommendation in 2013 to reform censor board.

a. Allowing any member of public who has a grieavance to approach

FCAT with complaints. At present only film-makers can approach

FCAT and it leads to barrage of petitions in courts wasting resources

of judicial system.

b. Digital platforms – using digital platforms for certification for more

transparency and reduce corrupt practices.

c. More officers – appointing more officers at CBFCs 9 centers for

faster clearances.

d. New categories – Introducing new categories of under-12 and under-

15 in censor certification.

Freedom of Press

1. Unlike, the U.S. Constitution, the Indian Constitution does not expressly

provide freedom of press. However, it is now well settled that the words

“speech & expression” in Article 19(1) (a) includes freedom of press also

2. However it appears to be under threat as can be recent incidence –


20/20

www.iasscore.in

tes

a. World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) produced by Reporters Without

Borders (RSF) ranked India at 136 out of 180 nations worldwide in

terms of press freedom in 2015,

b. In July 2015, two jurnalists died of unnatural deaths who were actingagainst political class. One was from UP who posed articles against

SP leader; other one from MP wrote about illegal mining and land

grab.

c. In August 2015 Ministry of Information and Broadcasting sent show

cause notices sent to 4 news channels accusing them of attacking the

integrity of President and the judiciary by broadcasting voices critical

of the decision to hang Yakub Memon.

d. Also business communities threaten it by owning them they can’t

write against those who funds them (Reliance takeover of CNN-

IBN).

e. All this reminds us of the colonial era when they passed press

regulation acts to regulate their functioning.

3. Importance of freedom of press – why it needs to be ensured?

a. In Romesh Thapar v/s State of Madras, the judiciary observed that

“Freedom of speech & of the press lay at the foundation of all

democratic organizations”.

b. The press acts as the fourth pillar of a democracy.

c. Media perform various functions like being the eyes and ears of

people, keeping the goverment accountable etc An thus media argues

that it can’t perform these functions unless it’s free.

d. In this background NCRWC recommended that freedom of press be

specifically included under A – 19 (1)(a).

4. Press needs to be Responsible

a. Though, the press has played significant roles for public welfare butat times it act irresponsibly e.g. in 26/11 case where it showed live

coverage of air dropping NSG Commandoes on the rooftop of

Nariman House and most recently in Nepal disater where the line

between vouyerism and journalism was blurred.

b. And this is due to lack of ethics, lack of regulation and profit motive.

5. Conclusion

a. In words of the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, “The role

of journalism should be service. The Press is a great power, but an

uncontrolled pen serves but to destroy.”

b. Thus press freedom should be ensured but they shouldn’t misuse it.

Date post:	06-Jul-2018
Category:	Documents
Upload:	rajendra-kumar-k
View:	219 times
Download:	0 times