Regulation Of News On Digital Platforms: Govt Mulls Newspaper-Like Guidelines

The government of India said that just like print media follows the guidelines of Press Council of India, in the same way, digital news media will also have to follow. 

Prakash Javadekar

The Government of India on Thursday announced to bring the digital news media under regulation. Taking a note of spread of fake news and circulation of other condemnable content on the social media in the recent past, the Central government released a set of new guidelines to regulate the digital news media.

In a press conference held earlier in the day, Union Ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Prakash Javadekar unveiled  a 'code of ethics' and three-tier grievance redressal mechanism which will be applicable for news publishers, over-the-top (OTT) platforms and digital media.

During the presser, Union Ministers informed that just like print media follows the guidelines of Press Council of India, in the same way, digital news media will also have to follow certain set of guideliens.  

The minister said that the government is not sure whom to consult at present as it doesn’t know how many news websites are there in the country. It also said that the Ministry needs to get information first about who all are operating in the news website space, then only will the authorities be able to begin the consultation process in regards to the regulation of digital media. 

Speaking to the media, Javadekar said, "We need to get information first about who all are operating in the news website space. After that only we can begin the consultation process." 

Meanwhile, Central government today announced new rules for social media and code of ethics for OTT and digital media. According to the new Information Technology (Guidelines for Intermediaries and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, social media giants like Facebook and Twitter have to remove or disable contentious content within 36 hours of being notified or of a court order.

As per the new rules, social media intermediaries have to appoint a resident grievance officer, who will register complaints within 24 hours. The grievance redressal official must be resident in India and monthly compliance reports will have to be submitted by social media platforms.