The Editors Guild of India on Wednesday urged the government to “remove” the draft amendment to IT rules to allow social media companies to remove news articles deemed “fake” by the Press Information Bureau (PIB).
A statement issued by the editors said, “The Guild urges the ministry to conclude this new amendment and initiate meaningful consultations with press bodies, media organizations and other stakeholders on the regulatory framework for digital media.” Guild of India said
Expressing “deep concern” over the draft amendments to information technology, the Guild said in a statement: “At the outset, the determination of fake news cannot be in the hands of the government and will result in censorship of the press.” IT) Rules.
Several laws already exist to deal with fake news: Editors Guild
It further said that several laws are already in place to deal with material found to be factually incorrect.
“This new process basically works to make it easier to muzzle the free press, and will give broad powers to the PIB, or ‘any other agency authorized by the central government to fact-check’, to allow online intermediaries to distribute content The government may be in trouble,” the Guild said.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on Tuesday issued amendments to the draft Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Code of Conduct) Rules, 2021, which was earlier released for public consultation.
The addition made to the “due diligence section” for social media intermediaries states that an intermediary shall not be allowed to publish information that “deceives or misleads the tracer as to the origin of the message”. or knowingly and knowingly communicates any false information” identified as “fake or false” by the Fact Check Unit of the PIB of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting or other agency authorized by the Central Government for fact-checking.
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Guild expresses its deep concern with IT rules
“Furthermore, the words ‘in relation to any business of the Central Government’ give a carte blanche to the Government to determine whether it is facile in relation to its work or not. This will deter legitimate criticism of the Government and a will adversely affect the press’s ability to hold government accountable, which plays a vital role in a democracy,” the Guild’s statement read.
“It is further to be noted that the Guild had raised its deep concerns with the IT Rules when they were first introduced in March 2021, claiming that they allow the Central Government to publish anywhere in the country without any judicial The various provisions in these rules have the potential to impose undue restrictions on the digital news media, and consequently the media at large,” the Guild said.