NEW DELHI: Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Minister Manish Tewari on Tuesday suggested government should have a role in ?enabling regulatory architecture ? for media, noting that regulation was not keeping pace with march of technology.

Tewari said the media resented regulation of any sort but felt it was necessary to introspect whether the government should be given some latitude for regulating the broadcast media.

It was necessary that a regulatory and enabling environment is in place at a time when the media was on the cusp of a change, he said and described self-regulation as an oxymoron.

The news broadcasters have a self-regulatory mechanism under News Broadcasters Association (NBA) and non-news broadcasters under Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF).

Tewari noted that the broadcasting sector has grown from just one public service channel 20 years ago to over 850 private channels now, and the FM radio had also seen exponential growth.

While dwelling on the social media, Tewari said regulation had failed to keep pace with technology and stressed the need for an enabling regulatory architecture that helps in adapting to changes in newer media.

He wondered how the democratisation of the information paradigm will affect the social milieu. ?While the right to privacy is an intrinsic part of the Constitution, the right to anonymity could be corrosive to social order.?

He was also concerned over issues relating to television rating points which were skewed in favour of the private channels at present. Noting that digitisation may help resolve this issue, he said there was a need for greater deliberation on this issue.

Tewari was delivering the inaugural address at the three-day Broadcast Engineering Services Expo organised by the Broadcast Engineering Society (India). The theme of the conference is ?Convergence and New Broadcast Technologies?.

Earlier, I&B Secretary Uday Kumar Varma said the TRP issue would not ordinarily be something that the government should be worried about, but felt skewed TRPs should not lead to deterioration of content. Furthermore, Prasar Bharati was not getting its fair share in the TRP system at present.

Referring to digitisation, Varma said it was unfortunate that ?we are still struggling with the standards of set top boxes? and regretted that the STBs had no portability.

He expressed satisfaction that the first phase had been very successful, particularly since even developed countries had taken up to a decade to digitise and India had achieved this in less than a year.

He said the plurality and the number of channels had grown so vastly that India was now second only to China, having overtaken the United States.

The I&B Secretary said digitisation gives new opportunities, but how one uses this opportunity is up to the stakeholder.

Referring to radio, Varma wondered why medium wave (MW) could not be developed and helped the way FM Radio was being helped. He said MW had its own specific purpose.

He said the government was keen that India should develop as a digital hub and the relaxations in the foreign direct investment scheme and infrastructure were aimed to make India a preferred destination.

Sam Pitroda, advisor to the Prime Minister on public information infrastructure and innovation, said every fourth Indian will be connected via broadband within the next few years.

NEW DELHI: The News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA), the self-governance arm of News Broadcasters Association (NBA), on Monday issued fresh guidelines barring news channels from revealing any information that divulges the name, photograph and other details of victims of sexual assault and child abuse and juvenile delinquents.

The guidelines also bar disclosure of the identity of the witnesses to such incidents.

In a new set of Guidelines on Reportage of Cases of Sexual Assault, the NBSA, chaired by Justice J S Verma, said the fresh guidelines were aimed at respecting the privacy of the victims.

The guidelines have been issued amid controversy over the revelation of the identity of the male companion of the 23-year-old Delhi rape victim by a news channel. Both were brutally assaulted by six persons in a moving bus on 16 December. A UK-based newspaper has already revealed the identity of the victim and also that of her father. The rape victim, who was a paramedic student, succumbed to her injuries in a Singapore hospital.

The guidelines bars news channels from divulging the name, photograph and other details that may lead to disclosure of the victim?s identity or that of the family, while reporting on cases of sexual assault on women, victims of child abuse and juvenile delinquents.

Similarly, news channels must ensure that no victim of sexual assault, violence, aggression, trauma or a witness to any such acts, is featured in any news report or programme relating to such victim, without concealing the identity of such person. In conformity with this principle, any visuals shown of the victim must be completely morphed.

The Authority said news channels must bear in mind that news coverage of crime influences the mindset of the viewer and has a significant impact on the public perception of such crime. ?In reporting on matters involving sexual assault, news channels are advised to carefully balance the survivor?s right to privacy and that of the survivor?s family with public interest.?

The NBSA said the term "sexual assault", in addition to any penal offenses prescribed in law, shall mean and include all forms of unwelcome sexually determined behaviour (whether directly or by implication) such as - (i) physical contact and advances, including eve-teasing and molestation; or (ii) a demand or request for sexual favours; or (iii) sexually coloured remarks; or (iv) showing pornography; or (v) acid attacks; or (vi) any other unwelcome physical, verbal or non-verbal conduct of sexual nature.

The NBSA says news channels must exercise sensitivity, discretion and sound judgment particularly when disclosure of details of the sexual assault would only serve to re-traumatise the survivor; and when details of the sexual assault are needed to be disclosed to secure a safe environment.

News channels must take special note of the provisions of Section 228A of the Indian Penal Code 1860 and of Section 21 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 which provide for protection of the identity of victims of sexual offences and of juveniles in conflict with the law.

Zee News? Response:

Reacting to the guidelines, editor of Zee News Sudhir Chaudhary told indiantelevision.com that "Zee News is committed towards showing utmost respect whenever new guidelines are issued by honourable NBSA."

Earlier, Chaudhary had issued a statement on the news channels decision to carry the interview of the friend of the Delhi rape victim. The statement is reproduced verbatim below:

"There are lot of mails and phone calls coming to Zee News and my colleagues in Zee News editorial that we should tell the viewers what happened in those two and a half hours in the bus and why Zee News did not show that part of story when we interviewed the witness? Most of the callers were sure that when we have interviewed the person from the time the victim girl and he were thrown out of the bus, thinking that both were dead, we must have recorded the details which happened in the bus as well. Why are we not showing that part?"

"In view of so many calls and angry messages, I want to tell the true version to the viewers of Zee News, as well as the 670 million viewers of Zee network.

"When we started recording the interview with the eye witness, he started telling us the story right from the time he and the victim came out of the mall and their unfortunate journey that began without knowing that their destiny is taking them to disaster. He talked about how they got into the bus and described the ambience in the bus, the dark glasses, the curtains and the darkness in the bus. These details are there in the interview we have telecast.

"He then started telling us the minute by minute account of what happened in the bus and how he and the helpless girl were struggling to defend themselves and how he was trying to save her.

"I have to tell you all my friends and well-wishers, which is YOU...

"It is because of you that my team, me and my company exists. If you as a viewer will not give your time to watch our channel we cannot survive. Hence you demanding the account of what happened with the girl and the boy in the bus, is fully justified.

"But dear viewers, I have to say that Zee News and the entire Zee Network has always kept the country?s dignity supreme. We have been responsible rather than keeping a selfish motive to make money as supreme. If we would have recorded and shown the minute by minute account of what happened in those two and half hour in the bus running on the busy roads of Delhi, our viewership would have exceeded the viewership of the 26/11 attack in Mumbai.

"It would have been a bigger television show than the attack on the Indian Parliament in 2001. You would have been as ashamed as much as we have been in the recording studio here.

"As soon as the witness started telling the minute by minute account, my team decided to switch off the cameras and not take it on record so that we are not tempted to telecast it. If we would have showed the details of the journey in the bus and how this never before crime was committed, we could have been rated the highest reality show amongst the 400 odd TV channels in India.

"We would have become the leaders in terms of TV ratings.

"But we would have also made the 121 Crore Indians feel ashamed of themselves.

"We felt that it could have aroused emotions of the people to the highest degree. We felt that it could have aroused the anger in all of us to dangerous levels.

"We felt that both emotions and anger could have resulted in a reaction like what happened when the Mandal Commission report was implemented by the Late V P Singh Government, when many young people set themselves on fire and died.

"Friends, that is why we did listen to the entire story and the account of what happened in the bus and all of us cried no end while listening. For the first time, I personally felt ashamed. I have always believed that we in India have the least police stations in the world as we have least crime but the voice which was going to hit my ears has shattered my belief. Hence we did not record this part of the story and we did not do it due to the reasons I have just put before you.

"If you feel we have made a mistake, or we were wrong you have the right to say so and feel so. We can still record and show you the details of the terrible bus journey due to which the late brave girl has woken up the nation. She has warned all of us. She has asked us to change. She expects all of us to be the agents of change and she wants that we should first change ourselves. We should become as fearless as she and her friend did in the entire two and a half hour journey. It is only then that we can force change. We can demand and change the kind of law makers we elect. It is only when we are out of fear and favor that we can change the kind of people that represent us within India as well as outside the nation.

"If we were selfish about getting more and more Television Rating Points, we would have shown the entire account of the gruesome incident. But Zee Network, Zee News, it?s executives and all the people who work with us are Indians first and have always stood by India?s self esteem and will continue to do so. We are for Television Respect Points and not Television Rating Points that everyone runs after and sensationalizes news.

"We are committed to do so without fear or favor. We know that in the present time the level of tolerance to face the truth has diminished all around. No one, I repeat, no one can face the slightest of criticism. This is despite many of them committing crimes and stealing public money and resources. Yet they file defamation cases against the media whenever the media tries to expose them.

"Today it is a well accepted fact that none of the people running the system appreciates media, specially the online and electronic media, as it is instant. A prominent Union Minister is on record in one public function and while he may have said it in other forums as well, but I quote from the one where I heard it. He has said that the paralysis of the government not functioning is not due to the UPA government and UPA is not responsible, it is because of the CAG, the Judiciary and the media.

"In this state of affairs, we at Zee News still continue our resolve to bring to you our viewers, the Indians at large, the decision makers and the civil society???.. The Truth. But what happened?

"We are being made villains by the Government?.. by the system??. by the police??? by the so called intellectuals ????and you my friends are there as a mute spectators.

"Any way our matter is not so important as the issue at hand, that of THE RAPE we are talking about.

"We will still face the atrocities of police, the system and the government, as we have been facing for the last few months including on Friday, when an FIR was logged against Zee News and I being the final authority was interrogated in a police station instead of being appreciated for being a responsible and a respectable journalist and broadcaster.

"The complaints by us against the complainant of an FIR filed earlier on Zee News Limited by an influential MP of the ruling party, fell on the deaf ears of the Delhi Police.

"Yesterday?s interrogation at the police station was only directed towards "Do not show the truth which is against the system" otherwise you will suffer and will have to face police action and atrocities.

"Friends, if I have your support I will say "We are and we will suffer such pains of the police raj. Though it is painful and very painful for our families, our children, but we feel these pains are far less than our elders who not only suffered the pain but laid their lives so that we the present generation could be liberated. They did give us freedom, but they also must be wondering "Did they hand over the Free India to the right people or the right system".

NEW DELHI: Describing the efforts of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry towards regulation of television as a ?farce? and the self-regulatory mechanisms as ineffective, MediaWatch-India has sent notice to Broadcast Content Complaints Council to expeditiously take action on certain issues raised by it or face action in a court of law.

The MWI - a voluntary initiative to promote decency and accountability in various media ? says the issues raised and suggestions made by it concerns basic rights of entire gamut of Indian TV audience, and so it has given the Indian Broadcasting Foundation and the BCCC 15 days to initiate action / spell out decisions in respect of each of the issues raised by it.

The letter regrets that there is no comprehensive and systematic regime of self-regulation put in place by the broadcasting fraternity or any semblance of ?legal regulation? by the I&B Ministry in its capacity as content regulator under extant legal provisions.

"The establishment of an independent/statutory authority to regulate broadcast content is still an elusive dream. The unfortunate result of this regulatory vacuum has been that millions of Indian viewers are rendered voiceless without any basic/credible grievance redressal mechanism against the content-related violations by the channels, which is adversely affecting their basic rights as consumers of broadcast content."

Inadequate publicity to Inter-Ministerial Committee

Referring to the role of the Ministry, it says adequate publicity has not been given to the Inter-Ministerial Committee. Furthermore, the Ministry has failed to prescribe any well-defined terms of reference or rules of procedure for systematic functioning of the committee. "Being a pure bureaucratic apparatus headed by the Additional Secretary of the Ministry (with a lone exception of a member from ASCI), the IMC is meeting rarely to deliberate on the complaints received against the satellite TV and FM Radio Channels".

The Ministry has not instituted any separate mechanism for systematic receipt, acknowledgement and reply of complaints received against the TV channels nor provided any dedicated secretarial set up to aid and assist IMC in processing the complaints. As no time limit is prescribed, the decision-making involved in taking action against TV channels by the Ministry is "dead slow resulting in inordinate delay in disposal of complaints against TV channels".

MWI also refers to the Annual Report of the Ministry which says ?It is neither possible nor desirable for the Government to monitor and regulate the volume and diversity of content provided, which is increasingly getting localized. Any kind of direct control by the Government is seen as violation of the right to freedom of speech and expression enshrined in the Constitution.?

MWI wants to know why there is no representation of civic society apart from ASCI in the IMC.

Reports of EMMC not acted upon

While the Ministry is receiving regular reports on monthly basis from Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC) regarding hundreds of violations by the satellite TV and FM radio channels, the Inter-ministerial committee is not processing them seriously and the Ministry is hardly taking any action against the erring channels, the MWI alleges.

While the local cable networks and satellite channels are bound by the same programme and advertisement codes under the Cable Network (Regulation) Rules, 1994, the Ministry is according differential treatment to satellite channels by adopting a very liberal code of ?penalties? in dealing with content-related complaints against satellite channels by simply issuing advisories or warning; or requiring the channel to scroll an apology for a specified number of days; apart from suspension of broadcast for specified time period.

It alleges that the Ministry has been forwarding complaints to the BCCC or the News Broadcasting Standards Authority of the News Broadcasters Association without any enabling provision in law to that effect.

"If the government truly believes in self-regulation, it should have taken efforts to facilitate/mandate for bringing together of broadcasting fraternity under one umbrella, should have formalized the self-regulatory code and penalties by consensus and by giving some sort of legal recognition for the decisions of self-regulatory bodies and thereby limiting the applicability of extant laws and by prescribing some minimum standards to be followed by them in the interests of viewers."

Self-regulation neither comprehensive nor deterrent

Referring to self-regulation regime by NBA/IBF as ?neither comprehensive nor deterrent?, MWI also points out that less than 300 broadcasters are members of these two bodies and the majority are free to flout any Code.

It is seen that the self-regulation efforts initiated in the last few years by the broadcasting industry in the form of NBA and IBF, ?though commendable?, are found to be not comprehensive and having limited efficacy due to several serious drawbacks.

The regime put in place by NBA and IBF is hardly ?viewer-centric? so as to inspire any public confidence in ?self-regulation?, much less to have a deterrent effect on the erring Channels.

IBF and NBA have not asked their member channels to allot any time to explain to the viewers about the newly introduced self-regulatory procedure and the fact that the complaint system is a two-tier one.

MWI also notes that no legal recognition is given by the government for the self-regulatory codes evolved by the bodies and their decisions but for the ad hoc ?practices? put forth by the Ministry like forwarding complaints against member channels of NBA/IBF to NBSA/BCCC respectively without any enabling legal provision to this effect. Furthermore, there is no appellate mechanism presently available for complainants/broadcasters against the decisions of BCCC & NBSA in case of their inaction or arbitrary decisions.

MWI wants the IBF to modify the relevant clause of BCCC by including a provision for deterrent financial penalty in cases where BCCC holds that the member channel had violated the code or where a member failed to abide by the direction of BCCC.

MUMBAI: China Central Television (CCTV), China?s national television station, CCTV Future Advertising and NBA China on Tuesday announced a new, comprehensive multi-year television partnership that includes a significant expansion of NBA coverage and the formation of a joint media team to market and promote NBA broadcasts.

This new agreement also marks a key milestone, as the companies celebrate the 26th anniversary of their partnership to provide access to the NBA and enhance the game of basketball in China. The NBA?s partnership with CCTV began with the 1987 All-Star Game, the first-ever NBA broadcast in China.

The partnership includes live NBA games, tape-delayed games aired in prime time and NBA original programming. With CCTV-5?s expertise in sports TV production and the NBA?s extensive High-Definition footage archives, the companies will create a customized NBA-themed weekly show with in-depth analysis and all-access reports around the league produced exclusively for fans in China.

CCTV Future Advertising, the advertising arm of CCTV, also entered into a partnership with NBA China to become official media partner on CCTV-5, forging a deeper and broader cooperation.

"We look forward to a new era of basketball coverage with the NBA, as basketball game broadcasts are among the most popular programs on CCTV-5," said CCTV-5 Director Heping Jiang. "The NBA represents the best professional basketball league in the world and we are thrilled to bring our fans more authentic NBA excitement through our comprehensive coverage."

"We?re thrilled to expand our partnership with CCTV and to introduce the most comprehensive NBA programming ever for our fans in China," said NBA China David Shoemaker. "Our new collaboration with CCTV will provide the highest quality original productions and customized shows for fans as well as first time, unique branded opportunities for advertisers."

CCTV-5 will air live NBA games each week on Tuesday, Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday. Fans will also enjoy tape-delayed marquee NBA games, NBA highlights and a customized weekly NBA themed show in prime time.

In addition to the extensive coverage of NBA regular season and playoff games, CCTV-5 will also broadcast live the Eastern and Western Conference Finals, the NBA Finals and NBA All-Star events including the All-Star Game, State Farm NBA All-Star Saturday Night and the BBVA Rising Stars Challenge. There will also be special NBA programming as part of the league?s Chinese New Year celebration, which follows last season?s successful inaugural event.