Digital news publishers need not get any registration to go online as there is no such provision in the Information Technology Act 2000 or Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules 2021, however, they need to submit their detailed particulars on a prescribed form to the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting for maintaining a database to have eventual recourse under the Oversight Regulatory mechanism, this was disclosed by Sh. Vikram Sahay, Joint Secretary, I&B in a Webinar held today.
The Webinar was aimed at enlightening the stakeholders – (a) publishers of news and current affairs content and (b) publishers of online curated content – on the Code of Ethics and Procedure and Safeguards in Relation to Digital Media falling under the ambit of Ministry of I&B.
Addressing the participants in a webinar on ‘Digital Media Ethics Code’ organized by the Ministry for the stakeholders in the UTs of Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh, and Himachal Pradesh, Sahay said that the rules establish a soft touch co-regulatory architecture involving a Code of Ethics and a three-tier grievance redressal framework for publishers on digital media.
Sahay made a brief presentation explaining the various aspects of ‘Digital Media Ethics Code’ such as the Code of Ethics for the publishers; the three-tier grievance redressal mechanism, and the provisions related to furnishing and disclosure of information by the digital media publishers. He informed that the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting has received information from over 1,800 publishers and added that several bodies and associations of publishers have sent communication regarding the constitution of self-regulating bodies under the Rules.
Digital news publishers, journalists and academia from the institutes of mass communication actively participated in the virtual interactive meeting. Several questions like official recognition to the digital portal journalists, objections to their participation in official events with Mobil Camera, Police interference on complaints, government advertisements and public grievance mechanisms via self-regulatory bodies and related issues highlighted by the participants were addressed during the webinar. Representatives from the Information & Public Relations Departments of the states/UTs; and heads of the regional media units of the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting also attended the event.
