UNIT 8 INITIATIVES IN MEDIA LAWS

Structure
8.0 Introduction
8.1 Learning Outcomes
8.2 Privacy
8.2.1 Press Council of India and Concept of Privacy
8.2.2 News Broadcasters’ Association and Concept of Privacy
8.3 Intellectual Property Rights
8.3.1 Fair Dealing
8.3.2 Fair Dealing in the Age of Internet
8.4 Contempt of Courts Act, 1971
8.4.1 Amendments of 2006
8.4.2 Problems in Reporting Sub-judice Matter
8.5 Right to Information
8.6 Code for Television
8.6.1 Programme Code
8.6.2 Advertising Code
8.6.3 Electronic Media Monitoring Centre
8.6.4 News Broadcasting Standards Authority: Code of Ethics
8.6.5 Broadcasting Content Complaints Council
8.7 Let Us Sum Up
8.8 Further Readings
8.9 Check Your Progress: Possible Answers

8.0 INTRODUCTION
This unit will give you an overview of the issues related to intrusion of privacy,
violation of intellectual property rights, and contempt of court. It also highlights
the key provisions of the Right to Information Act, the circumstances under which
information can be withheld, the protection afforded by the Act. Some code of
ethics for television news, programming, advertising proposed by different bodies
will also be looked. We shall examine, through case studies, the application of
some existing laws and question the implications of these laws.

8.1 LEARNING OUTCOMES

After going through this unit, you should be able to:
• discuss issues related to privacy, violation of intellectual property rights,
and contempt of court; and
• describe the key provisions of some select codes of ethics.
Activity – 1
Before you start going through this unit, take stock of what people around you
know of the media’s right to free speech. Ask 10-15 persons in your locality
the questions given below. Tabulate the data and analyse what people think on
right to freedom of the press. 47
 1) Do you think the press should be allowed 100% freedom of expression?
a) Yes b) No c) Don’t know
2) Do you think that there should be at least some checks and balances to
such a right?
a) Yes b) No c) Don’t know
3) Do you think Indian press is as free as the press in democracies like the
US and the UK?
a) Yes b) No c) Don’t know
4) Do you think right to privacy is big issue in the media in India?
a) Yes b) No c) Don’t know

8.2 PRIVACY
There is an old principle that law will protect a person’s life and liberty. However,
political, social and economic advancements have made it necessary to widen
the scope of right to life and liberty. Right to privacy is an extension of right to
life and liberty.

In the U.S.A. right to privacy developed after the publication of the article ‘The
Right to Privacy’ written by Samuel D. Warren and Louis D. Brandeis in the
Harvard Law Review of December 1890 (Vol. IV, No. 5). In their article Warren
and Brandeis (Harvard Law Review, p. 196) emphasised the need for the
development of right to privacy in the USA. They described this right as ‘right to
be left alone’.

“The Press is overstepping in every direction the obvious bounds of propriety

and of decency. Gossip is no longer the resource of the idle and of the vicious,
but has become a trade, which is pursued with industry as well as effrontery. To
satisfy purient taste the details of sexual relations are spread broadcast in the
columns of the daily papers. To occupy the indolent, column upon column is
filled with idle gossip, which can only be procured by intrusion upon the domestic
circle.”

In the original U.S. Constitution there was no right to privacy. The first, Fourth
and Fifth Amendments to the US Constitution led to the development of right to
privacy in the country.

In Article 21 of the Indian Constitution it is stated, “No person shall be deprived

of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law”.
The Supreme Court of India expanded the meaning of the word ‘life’. Accordingly,
life includes the right to live in fair and reasonable conditions, right to livelihood
by legal means and decent environment. The expanded scope of Article 21 has
been explained by the Supreme Court of India in the case of Unni Krishnan Vs.
State of Andhra Pradesh1993 AIR SC 217 (Tewari, 2014).

The Supreme Court itself provided a list of some of the rights covered under
Article 21 on the basis of earlier pronouncements:
1) The right to go abroad,
48 2) The right to privacy,
3) The right against solitary confinement,
4) The right against hand cuffing,
5) The right against delayed execution,
6) The right to shelter,
7) The right against custodial death,
8) The right against public hanging, and
9) Doctors assistance”

Thus with the interpretation of Article 21 by the Supreme Court, the right to
privacy is part of right of life and liberty.

8.2.1 Press Council of India and Concept of Privacy

Following are the norms of journalistic conduct given by the Press Council of
India on right to privacy:

Things concerning a person’s home, family, religion, health, sexuality, personal

life and private affairs, are covered by the concept of privacy, except when any of
these matters becomes an issue of public interest. A newspaper should not publish
such matters of a person without his consent – whether truthful or otherwise and
whether laudatory or critical. Position may, however, be different, if a person
voluntarily invites or raises a controversy. The press should not invade the privacy
of a person, if the subject matter is not of genuine public interest. Once a matter
becomes a material of public record, the right to privacy no longer exists, and it
becomes a legitimate subject for comment by the press.

While reporting crime involving rape, abduction or kidnapping females or sexual

assaults on children, publication of victims particulars leading to their identity
should be avoided. Similarly, minor children or infants who are the offspring of
sexual abuse or forcible marriage or illicit sexual relations should not be identified
or photographed.

In normal circumstances, newspapers should also avoid identifying the relatives

or associates of a person convicted or accused of a crime, when they are totally
innocent and a reference to them is not relevant to the matter reported.

8.2.2 News Broadcasters’ Association and Concept of Privacy

In their code of ethics News Broadcasters Association, India, it has been stated:

As a rule channels must not intrude into the private lives, or personal affairs of
individuals, unless there is a clearly established wider and identifiable public
interest for such a broadcast. Intrusion into the private spaces, records, transcripts,
telephone conversations and any other material will not be for salacious interest.
The intrusion could be done only when it is warranted in the public interest.

The law ministry is working on a proposal to make right to privacy a specific

fundamental right in the Constitution of India. Corporate lobbyist Nira Radia’s
phone tapping row and new-age surveillance techniques being extensively used
to crack down on economic offences were the trigger behind the move. However,
modern technology, increasing use of electronic devices for eavesdropping, and
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 the practices of industrial espionage have complicated the problem of maintaining
right to privacy.
Check Your Progress: 1
Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.
2) Compare your answers to ones given at the end of this unit.
1) In which article of the Constitution is the right to privacy enshrined?
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2) What are Press Council of India’s suggestions to the press on right to privacy?
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8.3 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS

Through copyright laws an author of a piece of work, gets the exclusive right to
reproduce it and control its distribution. India’s Copyright Act, 1957, lists the
kinds of works that are eligible for copyright protection. These are original literary,
dramatic, musical and artistic works, cinematographic films and sound recordings.
In India, the duration of copyright for published work lasts until sixty years after
the author’s death. Once the copyright has expired, the work falls into the public
domain.

The duration of copyright for unpublished work is not specified. If a work is

published posthumously, it is under copyright for sixty years from the date of
publication. Under the Copyright Act, it is illegal to reproduce a work, store it
electronically in any medium, issue copies not already in circulation, perform or
screen in public (a film or a play), facilitate the selling or hiring of copies, abridge
or translate the original work. However, translation rights can be obtained from
the Copyright Board in India seven years after the publication of a work.

The copyright laws in different countries are not adequate as far as infringement
across borders is concerned. For example, if an article or essay authored in the
US is reproduced in India and accessed via the Internet, it is not clear which
country’s copyright laws would be applicable. Intellectual property is meant to
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be automatically copyrighted and can enjoy the privileges therein by virtue of its
existence. Copyright includes all sorts of subsidiary works as well. This means
that letters and electronic mail messages, notes, sketches or any kind of work in
progress are also copyright protected.

The author of the novel Catcher in the Rye, J. D. Salinger, successfully sued a
biographer for using some of his private letters without his consent. Noted and
acclaimed novelist, Franz Kafka instructed that all his unpublished work and
manuscripts be burnt after his death as he did not want any of it published.
However, Max Brodd, Kafka’s close friend, decided to ignore his friend’s wishes,
recognising the literary merit of his work. If Kafka’s wishes had been carried out,
some of his most important and acclaimed works such as The Trial and The
Castle would never have been published. You will read more about Intellectual
Property Rights in Unit 9, Block 3 of this course.

First Sale Doctrine: The first sale doctrine means that once a work has been
sold, the purchaser has the right thereafter to sell or distribute that particular
copy. It does not, however, allow the right to reproduce the work.

8.3.2 Fair Dealing

The fair dealing rule appears in the Copyright Act of 1957. Section 52 outlines
acts of copying that do not breach copyright. It was formulated to allow a degree
of latitude in the use of copyrighted material, for the sake of upholding ‘free
culture’. Free culture is understood as providing the liberty to access material to
facilitate public debate, historical references and cross-cultural references.
Fair dealing means the following:
• Any work can be reproduced if the material is used for non-profit-making
activities of cultural value, such as education, art, science or if the material
is used in a newspaper or any other medium of mass communication for
the sake of reporting current affairs or in the public interest.
• If the material is used for commercial gain, however, it is not generally
protected by the fair use rule.
• The nature and content of the material will determine the extent to which it
can be fairly used.
• The quantity of material used will determine whether its use can be deemed
to be fair.
• Generally, up to 200 words of text, but not more than five per cent of the
full text of a published work, can be fairly used. Similarly, a few lines of a
song or a short excerpt from a film or television programme running into,
say, less than half a minute, may be reproduced in a ‘fair’ manner.
• The use of material should not damage its saleability.

8.3.3 Fair Dealing in the age of the Internet

However, there are certain aspects of technology which undermine and run contrary
to established norms and laws pertaining to copyrights. This area of contention
has been comprehensively argued by Lawrence Lessig (2004) in his book Free
Culture. Lessig considers how, as a reaction to the scope and uncontrolled nature
of the Internet, certain technological features have been introduced to prevent the
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 violation of copyright laws. He uses the example of his Adobe eBook Reader.
This programme allows a user to read e-books purchased on the Internet. For
each book, the programme has formulated a series of permissions which determine
the extent of use the reader has. It covers issues like whether the book may be
printed, how frequently it can be read and whether the text may be copied. There
are a few examples of such books, which, though in the public domain, have very
limited permissions granted by the programme. Lessig points out that the
programme is designed in such a way as ‘to deny the ability to transgress its
permissions’. For example, if you are permitted to print ten pages and try to print
a eleventh page, the programme’s controls for printing will not respond. He is
concerned that ‘code’ has a greater reach than the law. The best way to guard
against infringement of copyright is to ask for permission from the copyright
holder before use.
Check Your Progress: 2
Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.
2) Compare your answers to ones given at the end of this unit.
1) Why is the provision of ‘fair dealing’ important in the Copyright Act of
1957?
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2) In India how long does a copyright on a book exist?

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8.4 CONTEMPT OF COURTS ACT, 1971

Judiciary is the most important of the three arms of the government. It interprets
laws. The judiciary settles dispute between individuals, between the individual
and the State, and among the various constituents of the State. In order that it is
effective all must have faith and confidence in its impartiality, fairness and concern
for the rights of the individual, interest of the State and good of the society. For
this, its independence must be ensured. There must be no interference in its
functioning and no attempt to intimidate or influence it. Any such thing shall be
done on the pain of punishment.
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This is, broadly, the objective of providing for a law of contempt of courts. As
discussed in Unit 6, reasonable restrictions can be placed on the freedom of
expression in respect of the contempt of courts. Contempt of courts is of two
kinds, Civil Contempt and Criminal Contempt. Civil contempt means wilful
disobedience to any judgement, decree, direction, order, write or other process of
a court, or wilful breach of an undertaking given to a court.

Criminal contempt means publication of any matter or doing of any other act
whatsoever, which (i) scandalises or trends to scandalise or lowers or trends to
lower the authority of any court or (ii) prejudices or interferes or trends to interfere
with the due course of any judicial proceeding; or (iii) interferes or trends to
interfere or obstructs or trends to obstruct the administration of justice in any
other manner. Scandalisation here means scurrilous attack on the administration
of justice or vilification of the entire judiciary, a particular judge or a particular
court.

Publication of any thing which tends to create in the minds of the people an
apprehension about the integrity, ability or fairness of a judge or which trends to
deter litigants from complete reliance upon the court’s administration of justice,
embarrassment in the judge’s mind to the discharge of his official duty is a
contempt of court. Imputation of improper motives in deciding a case is obviously
a contempt of court.

However, the power to punish for scandalising the court is to be used sparingly
and in reference to the administration of justice only. It cannot be used for
vindicating personal insult to the judge. Bonafide criticism that is fair and
reasonable, criticism of a judicial act in the interest of the public good does not
amount to contempt. But, if improper motives are attributed to the judges then it
ceases to be bonafide. A judgement can be criticised as erroneous, but dishonesty
on the part of the judge in delivering the judgement cannot be alleged. If a statement
is likely to prejudice or interfere with the due course of justice, then the truthfulness
of the facts on which it is based, is no defence. Trial by newspapers has been
considered by courts as interference with the proper administration of justice in
pending cases. These are but a few examples of what amounts to the contempt of
court.

A fair and accurate report of judicial proceedings, a fair criticism of a judicial act,
and a bonafide complaint concerning the presiding officer of a subordinate court
do not constitute contempt of court. Supreme Court and High Courts being the
courts of record can punish any body for their contempt. Every High Court has
also the power to punish contempt of subordinate courts like their own contempt.

Punishments: A contemptor can be punished with simple imprisonment only for

a term extending up to six months or with a fine up to two thousands rupees or
with both. If s/he makes a satisfactory apology, the accused may be discharged or
the punishment awarded may be remitted.

In case of civil contempt, the contemptor cannot be sentenced even to simple

imprisonment. S/he can be detained in a civil prison for not more than six months;
normally, a fine would be considered sufficient to meet the ends of justice. The
time limit for action for contempt of court is one year.

Contempt of court includes publication of material which interferes with or

undermines the process of a trial, scandalises, or debases the authority of the 53
 court. The media should be particularly careful while reporting crime. Such stories
are considered hot news for the media since these stories would be of public
interest as well as be in interest of the public. This can lead to a temptation by the
media to provide extensive coverage to crime stories and also to speculate about
who is responsible for the crime and offer editorial comment.

8.4.1 Amendment of 2006

The Contempt of Courts Act was amended in 2006. In his article ‘Tensions between
two natural allies’ by V. Venkatesan published in The Hindu, New Delhi 26 June
2013, it is stated:

“The 2006 amendment to the Act providing for truth as a valid defence in contempt
proceedings has not really lead to any appreciable increase in reports critical of
the judiciary. The reason perhaps is that this defence is available to the 8 alleged
contemner only at the sentencing stage, and the courts are free to find one guilty,
irrespective of the amendment.

Besides, Section 13 (b) of the Act – inserted by the amendment – gives wide
discretion to the courts to admit truth as a defence to contempt proceedings if
such a defence is in “public interest”, and the request for invoking this defence is
“bonafide”. . . .”

The judgement of the Sahara India Real Estate Corpn. Ltd vs SEBI (known as the
legal reporting media guidelines case) is important for reporters. The judgement
was delivered by the Supreme Court in September 2012.

8.4.2 Problems in Reporting Sub judice Matter

Following are the problems in reporting sub judice matter:

• One reporter covers many courts hence may not be present in every court.
In such a situation often s/he receives information second-hand or third-
hand. That provides scope for distortion as it is passed on from one person
to another.

• Legal jargon is sometimes difficult for the lay persons as well as for
journalists to understand.

The Editors’ Guild, the Press Council of India, the Legal Services Committee of
the Supreme Court of India, and other organisations, raised a number of issues
on media coverage of criminal cases and trials, some of which include:
• Confession of crime before the media should not be accepted as admissible
evidence in a court of law.
• Judicial observations could be reported but always in the accurate context.
Check Your Progress: 3
Note: 1) Use the space below for your answers.
2) Compare your answers to ones given at the end of this unit.
1) What is scandalisation of court?
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2) What is Contempt of Court?

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8.5 RIGHT TO INFORMATION

The Right to Information Act, 2005, is a revised version of the Freedom of
Information Act, 2002. It was formulated to facilitate smooth access to information
for all citizens.

1) The Right to Information Act is based on the premise that democracy must
involve an informed citizenry and that a government must be accountable
to those governed.
2) However, the Act recognises several circumstances in which information
can be reasonably withheld.
3) Under Section 4 of the Act, all public bodies are required to disclose
information pertaining to their functioning; their employees, officials and
representatives; and a comprehensive audit of their accounts.
4) The Act encourages that such information be made public through the media
like newspapers, the Internet, hoardings and broadcasts.
5) The Act also encourages regular dissemination of such information to
minimize the occasions that members of the public need to resort to the
procedures of the Act to obtain information. This is because it takes time
and money to obtain information through the Act. In this capacity, the media
plays an important role in disseminating public information.
Circumstances for Withholding Information
Some of the circumstances for withholding information are as follows:
• Its disclosure would undermine the sovereignty and integrity of the India;
the security, scientific or economic interests of the State; friendly relations
of the State with foreign States; or would incite offence.
• Its publication has been forbidden by the courts and would amount to
contempt of court.
• Its disclosure would breach the privilege of Parliament.
• It pertains to trade secrets or intellectual property and its disclosure would
harm the financial interests of those to whom it relates.
• Its disclosure would endanger a person’s life or safety or is a breach of
confidentiality rights.
• Its disclosure would impede judicial procedures.
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 • Its disclosure would infringe a person’s copyright.
If an application for information is rejected due to one of the above reasons, the
applicant would be informed of the reason. If it is possible to abstract or edit that
information on a requested area, the abstracted/edited information would be
disclosed. This provision is called ‘severability’. Any activity undertaken in good
faith in adherence to this Act or the intended adherence to it shall be protected
from prosecution or penalty.

The Right to Information Act was amended in July 2019 which gave the
government powers to set salaries and service conditions for Information
Commissioners. You will read more about it in Unit 12, Block 3 of this course.
Check Your Progress: 4
Note: 1) Give your answer in the space provided below.
2) Compare your answers with ones given at the end of this unit.
1) What is the philosophy behind RTI Act 2005?
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2) On what grounds can information be withheld under RTI Act?
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8.6 CODE FOR TELEVISION

The Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 provide two codes: Programme
Code as well as Advertisement Code.

8.6.1 Programme Code

The salient features of the Programme Code are that no programme should be
carried in the cable service which:
a) offends against good taste or decency;
b) contains criticism of friendly countries;
c) contains attack on religions or communities by visuals or words
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 contemptuous of religious groups or which promote communal disharmony
d) contains anything obscene, defamatory, deliberate, false and suggestive
innuendos and half truths;
e) is likely to encourage or incite violence or contains anything against
maintenance of law and order or which promote anti-national attitudes.
f) contains anything amounting to contempt of court.
g) contains aspersions against the integrity of the President and Judiciary;
h) contains anything affecting the integrity of the Nation;
i) criticises, maligns or slanders any individual in person or certain groups,
segments of social, public and moral life of the country;
j) encourages supersition or blind belief;
k) denigrates women through the depiction in any manner of the figure of a
woman, her form or body or any part thereof in such a way as to have the
effect of being indecent, or derogatory to women, or is likely to deprave,
corrupt or injure the public morality or morals;

8.6.2 Advertising Code

The salient features of Advertising Code are that no advertisement shall be
permitted which:
i) derides any race, caste, colour, creed and nationality;
ii) is against any provision of the Constitution of India:
iii) tends to incite people to crime, cause disorder or violence or breach of law
or glorifies violence or obscenity in any way;
iv) presents criminality as desirable;
v) exploits the national emblem, or any part of the Constitution or the person
or personality of a national leader or a State dignitary;
vi) in its depiction of women violates the Constitutional guarantees to all
citizens. In particular, no advertisement shall be permitted which projects a
derogatory image of women. Women must not be portrayed in a manner
that emphasises passive, submissive qualities and encourages them to play
a subordinate, secondary role in the family and society. The cable operator
shall ensure that the portrayal of the female form, in the programmes carried
in his cable service is tasteful and aesthetic, and is within the well established
norms of good taste and decency;
vii) exploits social evils like dowry, child marriage.
viii) promotes directly or indirectly production, sale or consumption of —
a) cigarettes, tobacco products, wine, alcohol, liquor or other intoxicants;
etc.
The Aarushi murder case and a fake sting operation happened at a time when a
furious debate was raging in India about devising a strict code for television
channels. These episodes strengthened the hands of those who argued in favour
of stringent regulation. While most private television broadcasters acknowledged
the need for an independent regulatory body for television channels, there were
sharp disagreements on how the independence of the proposed regulatory authority 57
 should be ensured.

8.6.3 Electronic Media Monitoring Centre

Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC) of the Ministry of Information
and Broadcasting, Government of India, is a premier set-up with advanced
technologies to monitor, record and analyse broadcast content. It is entrusted
with the task of monitoring the content being aired by permitted satellite TV
channels for any violation of Programme and Advertising Codes under the Cable
Television Network (Regulation) Act, 1995.

EMMC has the technical facility to acquire, store and retrieve the content of 900
channels, beaming over the Indian Territory, so that any violations of codes framed
under the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act, 1995 could be checked
which must be adhered to by all broadcasting entities. The revised up-linking
guidelines and down-linking guidelines for channels beamed in India also require
monitoring of content for possible violations and remedial measures thereto.
EMMC prepares reports on apparent violations along with the recorded clips to
the Scrutiny Committee, which examines the purported violations and forwards
its findings to the Inter-Ministerial Committee and other bodies for further action.

EMMC also identifies topical matters of immense public importance and reports
them to the Ministry for evaluation and for taking any action, if needed. EMMC
also prepares and submits special reports to the Ministry on media coverage of
matters desired by the government.

8.6.4 News Broadcasting Standards Authority: Code of Ethics

In April 2008, the government proposed to monitor television content, and the
News Broadcasters Association (NBA) of India came out with a code of ethics.
NBA represents large number of private television news and current affairs
broadcasters.
Following are the salient features of the NBA code of ethics:
• Television news channels should recognise that they have a special
responsibility in adhering to high standards of journalism since they have
the most potent influence on public opinion.
• The code highlights the importance of maintaining impartiality and
objectivity in reporting to ensure neutrality.
• While reporting on crime, the code calls for safeguards to ensure that crime
and violence should not glorified and that acts of violence or intimidation
against women and children are not shown.

• It says television news channels should ensure that they do not show male
or female nudity. The channels should also not telecast explicit images of
sexual activity, sexual perversions, acts of sexual violence like rape or
molestation, pornography or use sexually suggestive language.

• As a rule, channels must not intrude on private lives or personal affairs of

individuals, unless there is a clearly established larger and identifiable public
interest for such a broadcast.

• On the question of national security, it states: ‘In the use of any terminology
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 or maps that represent India, all news channels will use specific terminology
and maps mandated by law and Indian government rules.’

• Further, the code adds: ‘News channels will not broadcast any material that
glorifies superstition and occultism in any manner … news channels will
also issue public disclaimers to ensure that viewers are not misled into
believing or emulating such beliefs and activity. Therefore, news channels
will not broadcast “as fact” myths about “supernatural” acts, apparitions
and ghosts, personal or social deviations or deviant behaviour, and re-
creations of the same.’

• The code goes on to state: ‘As a guiding principle, sting and undercover
operations should be last resort of news channels in an attempt to give the
viewer comprehensive coverage of any news story. News channels will not
allow sex and sleaze as a means to carry out sting operations, the use of
narcotics and psychotropic substances or any act of violence, intimidation,
or discrimination as a justifiable means in the recording of any sting
operation. Sting operations will also abide by the principles of self-regulation
… and news channels will ensure that they will be guided … by an
identifiable larger public interest. News channels will, as a ground rule,
ensure that sting operations are carried out only as a tool for getting
conclusive evidence of wrong doing or criminality, and that there is no
deliberate alteration of visuals, or editing, or interposing done with the raw
footage in a way that it alters or misrepresents the truth or presents only a
portion of the truth.’

The NBA had earlier rejected the government’s Broadcast Services Regulation
Bill seeking to establish a Broadcast Regulatory Authority of India for enforcing
a content code. Privately owned media organisations were wary of the government
assuming powers to regulate and monitor their activities. Having proposed a model
of self-regulation or a system of ‘judgment by peers’, the association has set up
its ‘own’ regulatory body, headed by a jurist and consisting of six nominated
members. Such a self-regulatory body has the power to impose fines in favour of,
or against, a complainant. In August 2008, the NBA announced the constitution
and establishment of the News Broadcasting Standards (Disputes Redressal)
Authority to enforce the NBA’s code of ethics and broadcasting standards.

8.6.5 Broadcasting Content Complaints Council

For non-news television channels, Broadcasting Content Complaints Council
(BCCC), chaired by Justice A.P. Shah, was set up by Indian Broadcasting
Federation (IBF) in June 2011. It implements IBF’s self-regulatory contents
guidelines and has power to impose fines on erring television channels.

8.7 LET US SUM UP

In this unit we have considered libel, privacy, copyright, contempt of court and
the right to information and the code of ethics recently implemented by the NBA.
We have also explained the role Electronic Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC)
which monitors, records and analyses the broadcast contents. We have looked at
those aspects of the law that have special relevance to media professionals. We
have seen how basic human rights and democratic principles form the basis for
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 the formulation of media laws. This unit has considered issues related to ethics
and laws in the international and the Indian context. It is important to realise that
laws are constantly changing and revisions are often based on previous cases
from around the world. Moreover, ethical propositions are a function of the
prevailing socio-cultural milieu.

In the unit, several complex and probing questions have been raised to which
there are no simple ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ answers. Answering these questions will
provide an understanding of the nuances and subtleties of the legal and ethical
standards. By considering different angles as objectively as possible, you would
become familiar with law as well as with ethical principles dealt with in earlier
units.

8.8 FURTHER READINGS

Thakurta, P.G. (2012), Media Ethics: Truth, Fairness and Objectivity: Making
and Breaking News, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, India
Nanda, V. (2018), Media Laws and Ethics: Kanishka Publishers
Campbell, Richard (2002), Media and Culture, Bedford/St Martin’s, Boston, US
Lessig, Lawrence (2004), Free Culture, Penguin, New York, US
Retief, Johan (2002), Media Ethics: An Introduction to Responsible Journalism,
Oxford University Press, Cape Town, South Africa
Rodman, George (2001), Making Sense of Media, Addison Wesley Longman,
Boston, US

8.9 CHECK YOUR PROGRESS: POSSIBLE

ANSWERS
Check Your Progress: 1
1) Right to privacy is enshrined in Article 21 of our Constitution which states,
“No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according
to procedure established by law”.

2) The Press Council of India suggested that press should not invade the privacy
of a person, if the subject matter is not of genuine public interest. Things
concerning a person’s home, family, religion, health, sexuality, personal
life and private affairs, are covered by the concept of privacy. A newspaper
should not publish such matters of a person without his/her consent –
whether truthful or otherwise. Once a matter becomes a material of public
record, the right to privacy no longer exists.

While reporting crime involving rape, abduction or kidnapping females or

sexual assaults on children, publication of victims particulars leading to
their identity should be avoided. In normal circumstances, newspapers
should also avoid identifying the relatives or associates of a person convicted
or accused of a crime, when they are totally innocent and a reference to
them is not relevant to the matter reported.

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Check Your Progress: 2
1) The fair dealing rule appears in the Copyright Act of 1957. The law outlines
acts of copying that do not breach copyright. It was formulated to allow a
degree of latitude in the use of copyrighted material, for the sake of upholding
‘free culture’. Free culture is understood as providing the liberty to access
material to facilitate public debate, historical references and cross-cultural
references.

2) In India, the duration of copyright for published work lasts until sixty years
after the author’s death. Once the copyright has expired, the work falls into
the public domain.
Check Your Progress: 3
1) Scandalisation means scurrilous attack on the administration of justice or
vilification of the entire judiciary, a particular judge or a particular court.

2) Publication of any thing which trends to create in the minds of the people
an apprehension about the integrity, ability or fairness of a judge or which
trends to deter litigants from complete reliance upon the court’s
administration of justice, embarrassment in the judge’s mind to the discharge
of his official duty is a contempt of court. Imputation of improper motives
in deciding a case is obviously a contempt of court.
Check Your Progress: 4
1) The Right to Information Act is based on the premise that democracy must
involve an informed citizenry and that a government must be accountable
to those governed.

2) Information can be withheld on the ground that it pertains to trade secrets

or intellectual property and its disclosure would harm the financial interests
of those to whom it relates.

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