This article is written by Somya Nigam, pursuing a Diploma in Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Laws from Lawsikho.com.

Introduction

Media in general refers to “medium” which in turn means communication, the mode of expression. Media not only plays an important role in democracy but also entertains the public by the way of films, music, dance, drama etc. Media is broadly classified into three categories:

1. Print media which includes newspaper, books, press releases, booklets, magazines etc.
2. Electronic media includes films, radio and television.
3. New age media which can be accessed through the internet or by other means plays a major role for the films, web series or music to be released on Over the Top (OTT) platforms.

After independence, with the advent of the technology and to ensure that there is no misuse of media activities the need for regulating the media was felt, especially radio, television, press as well as newer means of distribution like cable, films, satellite etc. In India the government has not only established specific laws to regulate the media activities but also to protect freedom.

With the objective to regulate the media industry the concerned authorities enacted various legislation from time to time like the Press Council of India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Central Board of Film Certification, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India etc.

Media Laws

During British period as well as post independence of India there have been various laws or legislation passed by the authorities in order to regulate the media activities and to protect the freedom of media. To name some of the important media laws:

1. First Press Regulation, 1799
2. Gagging Act, 1857
3. Indian Press Act, 1910
4. Vernacular Press Act, 1878
5. Constitutional Provisions regarding Press Freedom
6. Official Secrets Act, 1923
7. Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867
8. Contempt of Court Act
9. Cinematography Act, 1952
10. Young Persons (Harmful Publications) Act, 1956
11. Parliamentary Proceedings Act, 1956
12. Delivery of Books and Newspapers Act, 1954
13. Copyright Act, 1957
14. Press Council of India Act, 1965
15. Prasar Bharati Act, 1990
16.  Cable Television Regulation Act, 1995
17. Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, 1997
18. Sports Broadcasting Signal (mandatory sharing with prasar bharati) Act, 2007

Importance of Media Regulation

Media regulation would include regulation of conduct, structure or content of media. Regulation would prohibit libel and defamation, would set up provision regarding national security, obscenity, blasphemy, sedition promoted via the media, regarding the contents of films. Media regulation would also help in protecting privacy laws, laws concerning intellectual property rights, and prohibitions against incitement to violence or racial hatred, pornography etc. Need for regulating the press is also important in terms of moderating or supervising the credibility of the information that is published. News that has been displayed on television or published in a newspaper should be factual and based on actual happening; it should be a justified interpretation of the event and not “point of view” of what has happened.

Moreover it is important to regulate media in order to ensure the cultural diversity in media content and to provide the free space to put forward various opinions and ideas without censorship.

With the recent growth in the Media and Entertainment industry the use of the internet for media consumption has mobilized this growth. In the recent past the OTT platforms offer curated video content that is probably suited to the needs and demands of the individuals. The contents displayed through this platform are highly against ethics; highly use of obscenity, vulgarity, content that can hurt religious sentiments, defamation but no action can be taken as OTT platforms are not regulated by any legislation. Some specific laws or legislation must regulate this platform to ensure cultural diversity.

Government control over media

Media in India are self- regulated. The government does not have control over the media except a few. It depends what type of media we are talking about. Media is broadly classified into 5 parts in India:

1. Print media in which more emphasis is given to Newspapers;
2. Broadcasting, includes Radio;
3. Cable and Telecommunication includes Television;
4. Films;
5. OTT platforms.

Newspaper

Generally the government does not regulate newspapers and magazines. The Press Council of India is a quasi- judicial body constituted by the parliament and regulates print media in India. Its main objective is to maintain and improve the quality of newspaper and news agencies and to preserve the freedom of press. But it does not have the power to impose a penalty.  There are also other laws which deal with the regulations imposed upon the print media which include the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867 which came under British rule with the motive that if anything derogatory or explicit or ethically wrong/misleading or anything which creates a threat to the security and sovereignty of the nation, then the publisher can be proven guilty.

Television 

Government regulated 

Television came to India in 1969 and back then the government was controlling it and used to show only those programmes which can educate, entertain and inform the people. Doordarshan along with AIR is completely under government control working as department of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. All the programmes were shown on Doordarshan channel which was controlled by the government. Later on with the establishment of Prasar Bharati Act 1990, Doordarshan along with AIR became autonomous in 1997.

Private ownership

But in the early 90’s the government faced financial problems and then they started with private channels, which later started to turn into companies and started earning huge profit but at the same time the quality of the programmes started degrading and the need of regulation was felt. All the private channels came together and insisted not to imply any law instead proposed the self created guidelines and assured the court to abide by it. 

Other self- regulatory bodies which govern television content in India without government intervention includes Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act, 1997, Policy Guidelines for downlinking of Television Channels and Guidelines for obtaining DTH license among others. News channels are governed by a self-regulation body, the News Broadcasters Association (NBA).

Radio 

Government regulated AIR

With the liquidation of Indian Broadcasting Company in 1930, the government of India started controlling radio broadcasting. Firstly it was called All India Radio in 1936 and later was renamed as Akashvani from 1957. With the establishment of Prasar Bharati Act, 1990 the radio broadcasting became free from government control and later AIR also became an autonomous body without government control.

Private radio broadcasting

There are ranges of different types of private broadcasters from big Multinational Corporation to small local FM stations. All private broadcasters usually earn a huge profit. As radio was almost used by every household the government in 1999 approved the establishment of 150 private FM radio stations.

Films

Film industry of India is completely free and independent. The filmmakers are free to make the film as they want. But the distribution networks of films are controlled by the government. Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory film certification body in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India. The main task of CBFC is to regulate the public exhibition of films in theatre by giving certificates and not to do censorship of the contents under the provision of Cinematography Act, 1952.  The board currently issues four certificates. The certificates are:

• U: Unrestricted public exhibition.
• U/A: Parental guidance for children under age 12.
• A: Restricted to adults.
• S: Restricted to a specialised group of people, such as engineers, doctors or scientists.

The board may also refuse to certify a film. In the recent case of Phantom Film Pvt. Ltd. & Anr vs. Central Board of Film Certification, the film titled “Udta Punjab” what CBFC did that they acted beyond its power and gave direction to delete the name of Indian states given in the title of the film and even to remove references to several cuss words, and inexplicably, the deletion of a name of a dog jackie chan. The CBFC granted ‘A’ certificate to the film and then the producer of the film challenged the decision of CBFC before the Bombay High Court, 1 wherein the producers sought that the ‘A’ certification be granted without any conditions or cuts in the film. The Bombay High Court examined each of the deletions proposed by the CBFC, and held that the film cannot be objectionable merely due to depiction of the use or sale of drugs in a particular state and because of the political references therein and opined that the story must be viewed in its entirety. 

National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) was established in 1980 with the task of promoting good cinema, to produce and finance films, and overseas distribution of films.

National Centre of films for Children’s and Young People (CFSI) established in 1955, which produce and distribute films which essentially provide a clean and healthy environment for children and young people.

OTT Platforms

As OTT platforms are not regulated by any statutory body it enjoys ample amount of freedom and displays content with all sought of vulgarity. But in the recent time OTT platforms like (Hotstar, Voot, Netflix, Amazon prime etc) have considered self regulation of online content through voluntary code specifically for language, violence and sex.

Conclusion

Media is a powerful means for spirited democracy. The basic principles of democracy are that the media should enjoy more freedom and face less restriction from the government. With the growing time the media has to play the role of a regulator to the government and safeguard democracy itself. It is correct that sometimes the media is biased and might even feed us factually incorrect stories. But, controlling the media will only make the situation worse where agencies try to please the government. On the other hand, in a free and competitive environment, there is less chance that prejudice will survive for a long time. States can impose certain restrictions and there are certain laws which regulate the functioning of the media in India.

Reference

1. Phantom Films Pvt. Ltd. And Anr vs. The Central Board of Certification AIR 2016
2. https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/203650/10/10_chapter4.pdf
3. http://indiai.org/blog/should-media-be-regulated/

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