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Censorship and the state of media

The increasing trend of having a desensitised attitude and the general acceptance to incidents of activists and scribes being slapped with the NSA for social media posts passively by the public are even more worrying.

ByArambam Luther

Updated 28 Jan 2023, 5:03 am

Representational Image (PHOTO: IFP)
Representational Image (PHOTO: IFP)

The year 2023 began with a lot of unsettling developments in the nation concerning the freedom of the press. The Electronics and Information Technology Ministry has stated in a draft amendment to the Information Technology Rules, 2021 that any news deemed “Fake” by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) will have to be taken down by all platforms, including social media.

The Editors Guild of India reacted strongly, stating that the move was Orwellian and unconstitutional. It pointed out that the work of PIB is limited to disseminating information on government affairs and giving sweeping regulatory powers to such an agency is illegal. It further raised concern that the inclusion of other agencies authorised by the Central government for fact-checking will make the ambit of possible government agencies with such “draconian powers” even wider.

The general concern is that if the government decides what is true or not, then it will shrink the room for criticism and silence the critics as well. 

ALSO READ: Centre alone cannot determine fake news: Editors Guild on amendment to IT Rules

We have seen how the National Disaster Management Authority issued a “gag order”, asking government officials and institutions “not to interact with media and share data on social media” in connection with the Joshimath crisis in Uttarakhand.

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The move came a day after the Indian Space Research Organisations (ISRO) released a report, detailing how Joshimath saw rapid sinking in just 12 days. ISRO was made to pull down the report. The authorities stated that its sole intent was to stop the spread of panic, but the act of silencing the scientific community was condemned by many who called the censorship unconstitutional.

Amid all these, the dramatic act of cutting off powers and electricity by JNU authorities to stop the students from screening the controversial BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made international headlines.

Invoking emergency laws to put a sweeping ban on the documentary in the country, and disallowing it on Twitter and YouTube drew flak from various sections and media groups that called the censorship as majoritarian and totalitarian. Many, including the Opposition, have claimed that the country is under an “undeclared emergency.”                      

Meanwhile, defiant student groups in some universities in the country and the Opposition ruled states continue to screen the documentary, as per reports. The ban has also increased more interests and drawn more curiosity to it everywhere. This means that the censorship has backfired and caused a Streisand Effect ie, an online phenomenon in which attempts made to hide, censor, or prevent access to a piece of information cause an opposite result—the unintended consequence of drawing far more attention to that thing.

However, the fact remains that the year does not look promising for journalists and activists. The bottom line is more censorship is coming our way.     

Regardless of whether these developments will directly affect the freedom of the press in Manipur, it appears that the ruling state government has already influenced all narratives and discourses from various channels and agencies to a large extent.

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As for press freedom, we have seen cases of journalists being picked up and questioned by security forces over their opinions. We are no strangers to incidents of activists and scribes being slapped with the NSA for social media posts. The increasing trend of having a desensitised attitude and the general acceptance of these incidents passively by the public are even more worrying. 

ALSO READ: Government must enforce law for safety and security of journalists amid stark realities of threats

But in retrospect, it would be advantageous if journalists, activists, and the general public learn to discern the difference between giving fair criticisms that aim at a solution and throwing a highly provocative insult that usually concludes in a fistfight. It appears that the ability to insult someone by using language that reeks of extremely disparaging innuendoes or directly abusing someone with expletives is considered as an act of criticising or dissenting by some folks.

Concerning the struggles and many challenges that lie ahead, we simply cannot afford to speak on public platforms as if we are having a casual conversation with our drinking partners at a bar. It would be best if we stay and act sober, give informed, clear, and transparent opinions which are backed with logical evidence, and try to stick to the highest ethical standards. It is the least we can do at present.   

(The views expressed are personal)       

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Tags:

fake newspress freedomnsacensorshipit ruleseditors guild of india

Arambam Luther

Arambam Luther

Senior Sub-Editor, Imphal Free Press

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