Alok Prasanna Kumar of Vidhi Centre for Authorized Coverage warns of increasing laws
Mysuru: Alok Prasanna Kumar from the Vidhi Centre for Authorized Coverage, Bengaluru, delivered a chat titled ‘An Ice Age for Free Speech’ at a programme organised by the Mysore Open Discussion board (MOF) at Kalpa Kshetra Auditorium in Vijayanagar Fourth Stage yesterday.
Highlighting the Authorities’s 1995 introduction of The Cable Tv Networks (Regulation) Act to manage cable TV operations, Alok Prasanna Kumar acknowledged that the Ministry of Info and Broadcasting has now drafted the Broadcasting Providers (Regulation) Invoice, 2024, which goals to switch the 1995 Act.
This new Invoice classifies influencers and social media accounts that debate present affairs or information on-line as ‘digital information broadcasters.’
He additional defined that the Invoice introduces the time period ‘digital information broadcasters,’ overlaying people and entities producing on-line information or present affairs content material, corresponding to newsletters, social media posts, podcasts, and movies.
It additionally raises issues about non-traditional media creators being subjected to laws just like these imposed on streaming platforms, he added.
Prasanna Kumar continued by stating that the Invoice extends its scope past Over-The-High (OTT) content material and digital information to incorporate social media accounts and on-line video creators, constructing upon a model of the draft legislation launched in November 2023.
OTT content material and digital information
The up to date model broadly defines ‘digital information broadcasters,’ requiring prior registration with the Authorities and establishing content material analysis requirements. This Invoice revises the 2023 draft by the Ministry of Info and Broadcasting, aiming to consolidate the authorized framework for the broadcasting sector whereas extending it to OTT content material and digital information.
“The Invoice redefines ‘programme’ and ‘broadcasting’ to embody textual content material, guaranteeing protection of all on-line news-related materials. For instance, a Chartered Accountant providing monetary recommendation on YouTube or a journalist sharing updates on Twitter may now fall underneath this regulatory framework,” he defined. These updates goal to make sure the laws retains tempo with the quickly evolving digital media panorama.
He additional elaborated, “If a creator is classed as a digital information broadcaster, they have to notify the Ministry of Info and Broadcasting about their content material. They’re additionally required to determine Content material Analysis Committees (CEC) at their very own expense, guaranteeing various illustration, together with people educated about social teams, ladies’s points, youngster welfare, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Minorities.” He added that the names of CEC members have to be submitted to the Authorities.
As well as, Prasanna Kumar mentioned the state of India’s media, anti-free speech injunctions, the management of social media, and using SLAPP (Strategic Lawsuits In opposition to Public Participation), also referred to as intimidation lawsuits or strategic litigations aimed toward silencing public participation. MOF office-bearers and different attendees had been current.