News Analysis India

Tag: media

  • Delhi Police seize laptops, mobile of journalists

    By Express News Service

    The Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Tuesday morning conducted raids and seized laptops and mobile phones from journalists associated with the news portal NewsClick.

    According to official sources, the Special Cell has registered a case in the matter under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

    UAPA is a law designed to be used against terrorisit organization, and enables authorities to detain suspects for up to six months without filing chargesheet. They can also keep suspects in police custody for up to 30 days.

    Authoritiies have previously indicated that they suspect the owners of the portal to have received money from Chinese sources to fund the daily operations of the organization.

    At the same time, it is unusual for journalists of an organization to be raided in a case involving financial mismanagement by the owners or the parent company.

    In today’s raid, the journalists have been questioned and their mobile and laptops were seized by the cops. However, no arrests have been made so far.

    Senior Journalist Abhisar Sharma took to social media to inform about the raid being conducted at his residence.

    “Delhi police landed at my home. Taking away my laptop and Phone…,” Sharma wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

    Sources confirmed to the New Indian Express that searches are being made at around a dozen locations, including the office of NewsClick.On August 5, The New York Times published a report titled “A Global Web of Chinese Propaganda Leads to a US Tech Mogul” which claimed that the news portal NewsClick was part of a global network that received funding from American millionaire Neville Roy Singham, who allegedly works closely with the Chinese government media.

    Referring to the NYT report, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur had alleged that the Congress, China and NewsClick are attached to an ‘anti-India umbilical cord’ and the agenda of the Communist Party of China is being pushed through the website.

    Following the NYT report, the NewsClick had also issued a statement two days later and claimed that the allegations were made against it “are unfounded and without basis in fact or law.”

    The Special Cell of the Delhi Police on Tuesday morning conducted raids and seized laptops and mobile phones from journalists associated with the news portal NewsClick.

    According to official sources, the Special Cell has registered a case in the matter under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

    UAPA is a law designed to be used against terrorisit organization, and enables authorities to detain suspects for up to six months without filing chargesheet. They can also keep suspects in police custody for up to 30 days.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    Authoritiies have previously indicated that they suspect the owners of the portal to have received money from Chinese sources to fund the daily operations of the organization.

    At the same time, it is unusual for journalists of an organization to be raided in a case involving financial mismanagement by the owners or the parent company.

    In today’s raid, the journalists have been questioned and their mobile and laptops were seized by the cops. However, no arrests have been made so far.

    Senior Journalist Abhisar Sharma took to social media to inform about the raid being conducted at his residence.

    “Delhi police landed at my home. Taking away my laptop and Phone…,” Sharma wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

    Sources confirmed to the New Indian Express that searches are being made at around a dozen locations, including the office of NewsClick.
    On August 5, The New York Times published a report titled “A Global Web of Chinese Propaganda Leads to a US Tech Mogul” which claimed that the news portal NewsClick was part of a global network that received funding from American millionaire Neville Roy Singham, who allegedly works closely with the Chinese government media.

    Referring to the NYT report, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur had alleged that the Congress, China and NewsClick are attached to an ‘anti-India umbilical cord’ and the agenda of the Communist Party of China is being pushed through the website.

    Following the NYT report, the NewsClick had also issued a statement two days later and claimed that the allegations were made against it “are unfounded and without basis in fact or law.”

  • Piyush Goyal calls for self-regulation within media and entertainment industry

    By ANI

    NEW DELHI: Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday called for some forms of self-regulation within the media and entertainment industry with regard to content and said that if the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation.

    Addressing the Valedictory Session of the 11th Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Big Picture Summit in New Delhi, he said, “On the one hand we talk of our culture, our heritage, our rich tradition, our family value system and on the other hand some of what we see on television and OTT platforms certainly is beyond what is ordinarily accepted standards within the Indian cultural landscape.”

    He said that if the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation.

    “Modern, catchy and entertaining way of presentation of content was very welcome but a certain level of decency in the presentation of India, Indian families and Indian culture is something that captains of the industry must pay attention to. The messaging in these programs must not be disconnected from the Indian reality. If the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation,” he said.

    Goyal said that the media and entertainment sector presented a remarkable opportunity for India but stressed that this opportunity could be realized only if the entire industry, its verticals, and stakeholders came together to ideate and synergize.

    He appreciated the industry for its informing, connecting, engaging and entertaining content during the Covid pandemic.

    Goyal said that there was a need to make our legal framework much more contemporary.

    “It was time that we moved out of the colonial mindset as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and moved away from outdated laws. He assured that the government would engage with industry to conceive laws which would truly facilitate growth and simplify day-to-day operations in this sector,” he said.

    The Minister also said that efforts would be made to simplify the ecosystem of permissions for shooting in India by making provisions to grant them through a single window framework.

    “Centre had already liberalized FDI in the entertainment industry to enable companies from all over the world to invest in India and all efforts must be directed towards laying a red carpet for international artists to create in India,” Goyal further said.

    With a suggestion to “create content in India for the world”, the minister said, “Content could be created in India at much more economical costs and underscored that India had the ability to become content creators for the world.

    He also pointed out the employment opportunities generated by the industry and said, “The entertainment industry had great potential for employment generation and called for more skill development and educational courses.”

    He also dwelled upon the need to ensure fair wages, social security, healthcare etc. to those who work in the sector to make them an integral part of the success story of this sector.

    The Minister released two reports prepared by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on broadcasting. Apurva Chandra, Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and other dignitaries were present on occasion.

    NEW DELHI: Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Thursday called for some forms of self-regulation within the media and entertainment industry with regard to content and said that if the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation.

    Addressing the Valedictory Session of the 11th Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Big Picture Summit in New Delhi, he said, “On the one hand we talk of our culture, our heritage, our rich tradition, our family value system and on the other hand some of what we see on television and OTT platforms certainly is beyond what is ordinarily accepted standards within the Indian cultural landscape.”

    He said that if the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation.

    “Modern, catchy and entertaining way of presentation of content was very welcome but a certain level of decency in the presentation of India, Indian families and Indian culture is something that captains of the industry must pay attention to. The messaging in these programs must not be disconnected from the Indian reality. If the industry does not self-regulate, there will be a clamour from society and the government would then have to undertake regulation,” he said.

    Goyal said that the media and entertainment sector presented a remarkable opportunity for India but stressed that this opportunity could be realized only if the entire industry, its verticals, and stakeholders came together to ideate and synergize.

    He appreciated the industry for its informing, connecting, engaging and entertaining content during the Covid pandemic.

    Goyal said that there was a need to make our legal framework much more contemporary.

    “It was time that we moved out of the colonial mindset as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and moved away from outdated laws. He assured that the government would engage with industry to conceive laws which would truly facilitate growth and simplify day-to-day operations in this sector,” he said.

    The Minister also said that efforts would be made to simplify the ecosystem of permissions for shooting in India by making provisions to grant them through a single window framework.

    “Centre had already liberalized FDI in the entertainment industry to enable companies from all over the world to invest in India and all efforts must be directed towards laying a red carpet for international artists to create in India,” Goyal further said.

    With a suggestion to “create content in India for the world”, the minister said, “Content could be created in India at much more economical costs and underscored that India had the ability to become content creators for the world.

    He also pointed out the employment opportunities generated by the industry and said, “The entertainment industry had great potential for employment generation and called for more skill development and educational courses.”

    He also dwelled upon the need to ensure fair wages, social security, healthcare etc. to those who work in the sector to make them an integral part of the success story of this sector.

    The Minister released two reports prepared by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on broadcasting. Apurva Chandra, Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and other dignitaries were present on occasion.

  • Media must confine itself to honest journalism, not use influence to expand business: CJI Ramana

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: Media must confine itself to honest journalism and not use it as a tool to expand its influence and business interests, said Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana on Tuesday.

    Ramana said a media house with “other business interests” becomes vulnerable to external pressures and often business interests prevail over the spirit of independent journalism which compromises democracy.

    Asserting that independent journalism is the “backbone of democracy”, the CJI “a former journalist– also urged the stakeholders to introspect why the standards here are not considered good enough for international recognition and laurel in the field of journalism.” He was speaking at the launch of Gulab Chand Kothari’s book titled ‘The Gita Vijnana Upanishad’.

    Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla presided over the event.

    Last week, the CJI had raised similar concerns and said, “agenda-driven debates” and “kangaroo courts” being run by media are detrimental to the health of democracy.

    These recent remarks by Ramana assume significance following the backlash to a verdict earlier this month on former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s comments on Prophet Mohammad, which the Supreme Court said had stoked communal tension across the country.

    “When a media house has other business interests, it becomes vulnerable to external pressures. Often, business interests prevail over the spirit of independent journalism. As a result, democracy gets compromised,” Ramana said on Tuesday.

    “Journalists are the eyes and the ears of the people. It is the responsibility of media houses to present facts. Especially in the Indian social scenario, people still believe that whatever is printed is true. All I want to say is that the media must confine itself to honest journalism without using it as a tool to expand its influence and business interests,” he said.

    While the country’s senior-most judge acknowledged the presence of “journalists who are equally enthused in today’s media”, he remarked that when a brilliant story filed by a journalist is killed at the desk, it is thoroughly demoralising.

    He said the “true nature” of a media house would be assessed and appropriate conclusions drawn from their conduct during testing times as he recollected that “only media houses without business baggage, were able to fight for democracy during the dark days of Emergency”.

    CJI Ramana also said there was no “systemic support” for journalists in the country and neither was there an award which was comparable to the Pulitzer or “many Pulitzer winning journalists”.

    NEW DELHI: Media must confine itself to honest journalism and not use it as a tool to expand its influence and business interests, said Chief Justice of India (CJI) NV Ramana on Tuesday.

    Ramana said a media house with “other business interests” becomes vulnerable to external pressures and often business interests prevail over the spirit of independent journalism which compromises democracy.

    Asserting that independent journalism is the “backbone of democracy”, the CJI “a former journalist– also urged the stakeholders to introspect why the standards here are not considered good enough for international recognition and laurel in the field of journalism.” He was speaking at the launch of Gulab Chand Kothari’s book titled ‘The Gita Vijnana Upanishad’.

    Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla presided over the event.

    Last week, the CJI had raised similar concerns and said, “agenda-driven debates” and “kangaroo courts” being run by media are detrimental to the health of democracy.

    These recent remarks by Ramana assume significance following the backlash to a verdict earlier this month on former BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma’s comments on Prophet Mohammad, which the Supreme Court said had stoked communal tension across the country.

    “When a media house has other business interests, it becomes vulnerable to external pressures. Often, business interests prevail over the spirit of independent journalism. As a result, democracy gets compromised,” Ramana said on Tuesday.

    “Journalists are the eyes and the ears of the people. It is the responsibility of media houses to present facts. Especially in the Indian social scenario, people still believe that whatever is printed is true. All I want to say is that the media must confine itself to honest journalism without using it as a tool to expand its influence and business interests,” he said.

    While the country’s senior-most judge acknowledged the presence of “journalists who are equally enthused in today’s media”, he remarked that when a brilliant story filed by a journalist is killed at the desk, it is thoroughly demoralising.

    He said the “true nature” of a media house would be assessed and appropriate conclusions drawn from their conduct during testing times as he recollected that “only media houses without business baggage, were able to fight for democracy during the dark days of Emergency”.

    CJI Ramana also said there was no “systemic support” for journalists in the country and neither was there an award which was comparable to the Pulitzer or “many Pulitzer winning journalists”.

  • Ukrainian film, TV groups urge boycott of Russian media, business ties

    LOS ANGELES: Ukrainian film and TV bodies have begun calls for a boycott of Russian media and the severing of business ties with Russian entities.

    Russia’s film and TV industry have been steadily growing in recent years, with events such as the Key Buyers Event — an annual content showcase organised by Russian film promotion body Roskino — drawing 200 international buyers last year.Now, many of those relationships will be tested on a global stage as Ukraine’s media organisations ask for a boycott of all business dealings with Russia, reports variety.com.The organisers of Kiev Media Week, a 10-year-old international film and TV market serving Eastern Europe, has called for a ban on Russian propaganda.In a letter issued widely on Saturday to international media, including ‘Variety’, the group asked supporters of Ukraine to stop broadcasting any Russian channels from their respective countries.”Putin’s regime escalated the current war with all the weapons available, which means the media sphere to be a battlefield worldwide,” reads the letter.

    ALSO READ: AJR cancels Russian tour due to Ukraine invasion”Therefore, we call on the international media community to resist the poisonous Russian (sic) propaganda and unite the efforts to switch off Russian (sic) TV broadcasting in your countries.”Kiev Media Week organisers have thrown their support behind Ukraine’s Ministry of Culture and Information Policy, which on Saturday revealed plans for a unified media strategy across all of Ukraine.In a bid to ensure “reliable and truthful information relating to Russia’s war against Ukraine”, media groups including 1+1 media, StarLightMedia, Media Group Ukraine and Inter Media Group have begun broadcasting a single newscast called ‘United News’.”We objectively and promptly provide comprehensive information from different regions of the country 24/7,” reads the statement. “We are ready to provide TV providers with our signal, and thus, ask you to help spread this information.”The group has asked its partners to “turn off all Russian news channels so that Russia’s outright propaganda does not go beyond Russia itself.” Supporters are asked to block or turn off the broadcast of these channels on European satellites.The Ministry of Culture and Information Policy has also asked YouTube to block Russian TV channels on the platform.These channels include First Channel, Star, TNT, Russia Today and Ren TV. “All of them are tools of Russian propaganda, on which the Kremlin fakes and disinformation are broadcasted,” reads a statement on the ministry’s verified Facebook page.”Consuming information from them is dangerous for infoprostoru and Ukraine, and the whole world.”Elsewhere, the Ukrainian Film Academy, speaking on behalf of the country’s film community, has also issued a separate call for a ban on Russian cinema through a series of six requests.The group, which has begun a Change.org petition, asks the European Council to exclude Russia from the Eurimages cinema fund and to terminate all co-production agreements.It also asks festivals to bar Russian-made or co-produced movies. The International Federation of Film Producers Associations has been asked to prohibit accreditation for the Moscow International Film Festival.

    ALSO READ: David Lynch slams Vladimir Putin over Russian invasion of UkraineThe group is also asking producers to terminate any business dealings with “business entities of the Russian Federation” and “not to transfer intellectual property rights to any films to the territory of the Russian Federation”.Meanwhile, distributors are being asked to examine their contracts with the Russian Federation. “The films are illegally distributed to the legal territory of Ukraine, namely: the temporarily occupied territories of Crimea, and the so-called ‘DPR’ and ‘LPR.’ By issuing such licenses (in particular, making kmd keys for cinemas), you are in fact violating Ukrainian sovereignty.”Finally, members of the CEPI (the European Audiovisual Production Association) Dond CFP-E (European Federation for Commercial Film Producers) have been urged to “cease any cooperation with audiovisual producers who support aggression against Ukraine, in particular, the distribution of audiovisual works in the member countries with the participation of actors and public figures supporting the Russian crime”.Ukrainian forces are bracing for the second night of Russian attacks on the capital. The invasion has so far killed 198 Ukrainians, according to recent figures from the BBC.

  • Modi govt can’t tolerate even slightest criticism: Ashok Gehlot on Dainik Bhaskar raids

    By PTI
    JAIPUR: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday slammed the Income Tax raids at the offices of media houses, terming them as an attempt to suppress their voice.

    The Income Tax Department on Thursday conducted raids against two prominent media groups, Dainik Bhaskar and Uttar Pradesh-based Hindi news channel Bharat Samachar, in multiple cities on charges of tax evasion, official sources said.

    FULL STORY | Income department raids multiple premises of media group Dainik Bhaskar

    Gehlot charged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi led government cannot tolerate even the slightest criticism.

    “Income tax raid on the offices of Dainik Bhaskar newspaper and Bharat Samachar news channel is an attempt to suppress the media.

    Modi government cannot tolerate even the slightest criticism.

    This is the fascist mentality of BJP which does not like to see the mirror of truth in democracy,” Gehlot said in a tweet.

    He charged that by taking such action, the Modi government wants to send a message to media houses that if they are not in their favour then their voice will be crushed.

  • Govrnment refuses to exempt mainstream media from new IT rules, asks them to comply with its provisions 

    By PTI
    NEW DELHI: The government has refused to exempt the digital news content of mainstream television channels and print media from the ambit of the IT Rules, 2021 and asked them to take “urgent steps” to comply with the provisions of the digital media rules immediately.

    The rationale for bringing the websites of the organisations under the ambit of the law is “well reasoned”, the information and broadcasting ministry said in a clarification to digital news publishers, publishers of online curated content or OTT platforms and associations of digital media publishers on Thursday.

    “Making any exception of the nature proposed will be discriminatory to the digital news publishers who do not have a traditional TV/print platform,” the ministry said.

    The National Broadcasters Association (NBA) had recently written to the ministry, urging it to “exempt and exclude” the traditional television news media and its extended presence on digital news platforms from the ambit of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, saying they are already “sufficiently regulated” by various statutes, laws, guidelines, codes and regulations.

    “Since the code of ethics requires such digital platforms to follow the exiting norms/content regulations, which are in vogue for the traditional print and TV media, there is no additional regulatory burden for such entities.

    Accordingly, the request for exempting the digital news content of such organisations from the ambit of digital media rules 2021 cannot be acceded to,” the ministry said.

    However, the ministry said, it does recognise that entities having traditional TV and print media are already registered with the government either under the Press and Registration Books Act or the Uplinking and Downlinking Guidelines of 2011.

    “The digital version/digital publication of the organisations having traditional news platforms (TV and print) may be following internal guidelines of the self-regulatory bodies.

    Accordingly, if the organisations so desire, they can request the same self-regulatory bodies to serve as the Level II of the self-regulatory mechanism, after ensuring consistency with the Digital Media Rules, 2021,” it said.

    The ministry clarified that when any news and current affairs content of a digital news publisher is transmitted on an OTT platform, such content would be outside the regulatory responsibility of that platform.

    “However, if any OTT platform receives a grievance related to such news and current affairs, it may transfer the same to the publisher concerned of that content. Accordingly, there should not be any apprehension on this count either to the digital news publishers or to the OTT platforms,” it said.

    The ministry noted that the television news channels already have a self-regulatory mechanism in place to adjudicate grievances relating to the violation of the programme code under the Cable Television Network Act, 1995 and their internal codes or guidelines.

    “The requirement of Level II under the Digital Media Rules, 2021 is only an extension of an existing institutional practice. Further, the composition of the self-regulating body would be decided entirely by the publishers and the government has no role to play,” the ministry said.

    “It is neither stipulated nor intended for the government to either interfere or obstruct the formation of the self-regulating body including its composition,” it added.

    The ministry also dismissed the concerns that the oversight mechanism stipulated under the digital media rules would lead to excessive government control over the functioning of the digital news publishers and the OTT platforms.

    “In this regard, it may be mentioned that even at present, in respect of the traditional TV channels, there is an oversight mechanism in the government by way of an inter-ministerial committee (IMC), which looks at certain grievances relating to the violation of the Programme Code, a mechanism which is in existence since 2005,” it said.

    Over the last 15 years, the IMC has given recommendations by way of advisories, warnings etc.

    in respect of a large number of cases involving the content of both news and non-news channels in relation to the Programme Code and in almost every such case, the TV channels have accepted the recommendations of the panel, the ministry said.

    “The IMC mechanism has stood the test of time. The concept of an inter-departmental committee (IDC) is similar,” it said. “Further, Level III is visualised as a residual level, insofar as the grievances which do not get addressed at the first and second levels would go to the IDC. Accordingly, the apprehension of excessive government control through these mechanisms is misplaced,” the ministry said.

    In the overall context, the Digital Media Rules, 2021 may be complied with by the digital news publishers and the OTT platforms without any misapprehensions, it added.

    “The publishers may furnish the requisite information in the prescribed format immediately, take urgent steps for appointing a grievance officer, if not done, and place all relevant details in the public domain, constitute self-regulatory bodies through mutual consultation so that the grievances are addressed at the level of publishers or the self-regulating bodies themselves,” the ministry said. More than 500 publishers have already submitted their details in the requisite format, it added.

  • SC says Article 19 not only for people, but also confers this right to media | TOP POINTS

    Supreme Court on Thursday said that  Article 19 does not give right to freedom of speech and expression only to people, but also confers this right to media.

    “Article 19 does not give right to freedom of speech and expression only to people, but also confers this right to the media. It would be retrograde for the Supreme Court to gag media,” the Supreme Court said.

    “We find no substance in prayer of EC to restrain media from reporting court proceedings. It is essential to hold judiciary accountable.”

    This statement was made after Election Commission filed a  petition complaining about media reports on the Madras High Court telling the poll body it should be booked for murder for not stopping political rallies amid Covid.

    Remarks against EC: SC says it will be retrograde to restrain HCs from making observations or gagging media from reporting observations

    Remarks against EC: SC says media cannot be restrained from reporting observations made during course of hearings

    SC lauds high courts for commendable work done during COVID-19, says they are effectively supervising pandemic management

    Off the cuff remarks are susceptible for misinterpretation, says SC on Madras HC observations against poll panel

    Media has right to cover court proceedings, says SC, terms as harsh Madras HC’s observations holding EC responsible for spread of COVID

    Madras HC’s observations against poll panel do not form part of judicial order, hence no question of expunging them:, said SC.