Govt Cautions TV Channels Against Broadcasting Disturbing Videos And Images

Govt Cautions TV Channels Against Broadcasting Disturbing Videos And Images

by Swarajya Staff - Monday, January 9, 2023 03:45 PM IST
Govt Cautions TV Channels Against Broadcasting Disturbing Videos And ImagesRepresentative Image (Pic Via News18)

The government on Monday (9 January) cautioned all television channels against broadcasting disturbing footages and images.

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued an advisory on Monday to all TV channels against "reporting accidents, deaths, and violence including violence against women, children and elderly in manners which grossly compromises on 'good taste and decency'".

The advisory has been issued after several instances of lack of discretion by television channels were noticed by the Ministry, said an official statement.

"The ministry has said that television channels have shown dead bodies of individuals and images/videos of injured persons with blood splattered around, people, including women, children and elderly being beaten mercilessly in close shots, continuous cries and shrieks of a child being beaten by a teacher, shown repeatedly over several minutes including circling the actions thereby making it even more ghastly, without taking the precaution of blurring the images or showing them from long shots," the statement said.

The ministry further highlighted that the manner of reporting such incidents is distasteful and distressing for the audience.

The advisory has highlighted the impact such reporting has on various audience.

It stated that such reports can also have an adverse psychological impact on the children.

There is also a crucial issue of invasion of privacy which could be potentially maligning and defamatory, the advisory has underlined.

Television, being a platform usually watched by families in households with people from all cohorts – old aged, middle aged, small children, etc., and with various socio-economic backgrounds, place certain sense of responsibility and discipline among the broadcasters, which have been enshrined in the Programme Code and the Advertising Code.

The ministry noted that in most cases the videos are being taken from social media and broadcast without editorial discretion and modifications to ensure compliance and consistency with the programme code.

Join our Telegram channel - no spam or links, only crisp analysis.
Get Swarajya in your inbox everyday. Subscribe here.
Tags: 

An Appeal...

Dear Reader,

As you are no doubt aware, Swarajya is a media product that is directly dependent on support from its readers in the form of subscriptions. We do not have the muscle and backing of a large media conglomerate nor are we playing for the large advertisement sweep-stake.

Our business model is you and your subscription. And in challenging times like these, we need your support now more than ever.

We deliver over 10 - 15 high quality articles with expert insights and views. From 7AM in the morning to 10PM late night we operate to ensure you, the reader, get to see what is just right.

Becoming a Patron or a subscriber for as little as Rs 1200/year is the best way you can support our efforts.

Become A Patron
Become A Subscriber
Comments ↓
Get Swarajya in your inbox everyday. Subscribe here.
Advertisement

Latest Articles

    Artboard 4Created with Sketch.