Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 08 October 2022
Many mainstream newspapers of Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been publishing stories on social media and their respective newspapers regarding youtube news channels, terming it dangerous and requesting the administration to tame such unregistered and unverified news channels.
What is the legal status of Nicobar Times?
Nicobar Times is the only recognised Digital Media Publisher operating in Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Nicobar Times is recognised by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India under I.T. (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules, 2021.
Nicobar Times is a part of Digipub News India Foundation which is also a registered SRB (Self Regulatory Body) under I.T. (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules, 2021. The name ‘Nicobar Times’ reflects in the list of Digital Media Publishers Associated with Digipub News India Foundation on the website of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India.
(Click on the List of Digital Media Publishers Associated with Digipub News India Foundation after clicking on the following link to find the name of Nicobar Times https://mib.gov.in/self-regulatory-bodies )
How many Youtube Channels (Digital News Publishers) from Andaman and Nicobar Islands are recognised by MIB?
None of the other Youtube News Channels (Digital News Publishers as they are formally known) operating from Andaman and Nicobar Islands are recognised as Digital News Publishers by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt of India.
Is registering with MIB mandatory for Digital News Publishers (Youtube Channels)?
Digital News Publishers (All forms including Youtube News Channels) must furnish their information to the Digital Media Division of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting in the applicable format as published on the website of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The information furnished will be scrutinised and the name of the publisher will be added to the list of Digital News Publishers under their respective SRB.
What rules do Digital News Publishers have to follow?
Digital News Publishers are bound to abide by the Norms of Journalistic Conduct of the Press Council of India under the Press Council Act, 1978 and Programme Code under section 5 of the Cable Television Networks Regulation) Act, 1995.
Digital News Publishers also have to publicly display true and full disclosure of all grievances received by it, the manner in which the grievances are disposed of, the action taken on the grievance, the reply sent to the complainant, the orders or directions received by it under these rules and action taken on such orders or directions. A format has been sent by MIB to all recognised Digital News Publishers to furnish the above-mentioned details. Nicobar Times has been displaying the said information under the Mandatory Disclosure tab on our website (https://nicobartimes.com/mandatory-disclosures/).
How can any member of the public file a complaint against any news published by a Digital News Publisher?
A proper three-tier grievance redressal mechanism has been formulated by the Ministry for the handling of grievances under the I.T. (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules, 2021.
A complaint can only be filed if any norm(s) of the Norms of Journalistic Conduct of the Press Council of India under the Press Council Act, 1978 and Programme Code under section 5 of the Cable Television Networks Regulation) Act, 1995 has been violated.
The first Level of Grievance Redressal rests with the publisher. In the case of Nicobar Times, we have provided a form in PDF and Word format which can be filled up by anyone who has any grievance regarding any news or content published by Nicobar Times and they can send it to the Grievance Officer whose contact is given in the same page.
The publisher is bound to take action on the grievance and inform the aggrieved party of the action taken within 15 days. In case the aggrieved party is still unsatisfied with the action of the publisher, he/she can approach the SRB of the publisher. In the case of Nicobar Times, the SRB is Digipub News India Foundation whose details will be provided to the aggrieved party by the publisher in the reply to the Level-I Grievance (In the case of Nicobar Times SRB Details are also available on the Grievances Page of our website).
In case the aggrieved party is still unsatisfied they can approach the Inter-Departmental Committee set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting after the grievance has been disposed of by the Self Regulatory Body of the publisher.
Who can regulate Digital Media in India?
Part III of the I.T. (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules, 2021 (which relates to Digital Media Publishers and OTT Platforms) is administered by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the powers have not been delegated to the State Governments/District Magistrates/Police Commissioners. An OM in this regard has been sent by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to the Chief Secretaries of all States and Union Territories on 03rd March 2021. (Copy of the OM is available at https://mib.gov.in/sites/default/files/OM%20%20to%20States%20regarding%20Code%20of%20Ethics.pdf)
Digital Media Publishers can only be directly regulated by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and not by the State or UT Govt./Administration.
Conclusion:
Youtube News Channels or Digital Media Publishers (which also include News Portals and other forms of Digital Media) have the same rights as any mainstream newspaper or television channel. The journalists working in such Digital Media Houses also have the same rights as any other journalist working in any mainstream form of media, as long as they follow the I.T. (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules, 2021 and have got themselves recognition from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India.