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FDI in media opposed

Special Correspondent

Regulate content of visual media: Press Council chairman

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Press Council of India (PCI) is of the view that there must be a body to regulate the content of visual media, Council chairman G. N. Ray said here on Thursday.

Addressing a news conference here, Mr. Ray said there must be some check on the kind of content that the electronic media presented to the masses because of the important role it played in society. The Government was seized of the matter, but several issues remained to be resolved before a proper regulatory mechanism was put in place. The Press Council had no control over the electronic media. There was, therefore, the question whether there should be separate councils to look after visual and print media and what type of regulation there should be for each, he pointed out. Mr. Ray, a former judge of the Supreme Court, said the more appropriate course would be for the media to have its own regulatory methodologies rather than outside supervision and regulation. If there was some folly, it must be looked into. The Press Council, he said, proposed to update its guidelines for the media. The Council would welcome publication of the document in various regional languages, he said.

Mr. Ray said the Press Council was against Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the media and conceded that there was a lot of exploitation in the visual media and this was forcing individual journalists to compromise on ethics and professionalism. He also regretted the general fall in the standards of journalism, but was hopeful that things would turn for the better in the days to come. The Press Council chairman said the Council would initiate suo motu action in the event of widespread attacks on mediapersons anywhere in the country as had happened in Kerala in 2004. The Council had constituted a three-member panel to look into the complaints from journalists in Kerala, but its visit to the State did not materialise following the tsunami disaster. Later, the Council decided against sending the team to Kerala. When the matter came up for the consideration of the Council after he took over charge as chairman, it had closed with the strong observation that it was wrong not to have sent the fact-finding team to Kerala.

Mr. Ray, who addressed the media on the conclusion of the two-day hearing by the Press Council, said the Council would shortly place before the Supreme Court its views on the public interest petition on the adverse effects of the objectionable material appearing in the press and its effects on minors.

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