List of dos and don'ts from ECI : Paid news and self regulation
- The Sangai Express Editorial :: January 05 2012 -

It is more than clear that the election code of conduct does not apply only to political parties, candidates or any other machinery that may be remotely associated with the electioneering process but also the media, which is largely seen as an independent entity.

Paid news is a term that has gained currency with the coming to force of the election code of conduct on December 24 last year in Manipur, obviously in connection with the upcoming 10th Manipur Legislative Assembly election scheduled to be held on January 28.

To the media establishments in the State, especially those based in Imphal, paid news as a term is not something new, but the strictures issued by the Election Commission of India, with due consultation with the Press Council of India have obviously meant certain new things.

Removed from the election code of conduct, paid news was traditionally understood with reference to the monetary offerings that may come from some entity or individuals or officials to get something published, which may or may not have news value.

Obviously the monetary offer came from those looking for their moments under the sun or those who were obsessed with publicity, albeit with an eye on the future. Some sort of an investment.

Yet to others a few rupees expended now by making monetary offers could mean investing on a portfolio for the future which may stand them in good stead at the time their annual confidential reports are written.

All these practices go against the very ethos and ethics of journalism and while this has never posed much of a problem for the Editors to identify, the new dos and don'ts issued by the Election Commission of India, with regard to paid news certainly seem to have raised a number of questions, the answers for which may not entirely come in black and white.

A workshop organised jointly by the All Manipur Working Journalists' Union and the office of the Chief Electoral Officer on January 4 sought to address some of these questions which mostly fall on grey areas.

The basic idea of coming down hard on what are perceived to be paid news rests on the premise that the media has for long been used by some candidates, political parties or any other entity during election time, that contents may be inserted as news items and in the process project a candidate or a political party, for a price.

This line of thought is not without foundation for there have been times when certain sections of the media or the media may have pandered to the wishes of certain political parties and candidates, thereby publishing surrogate advertisements.

Secondly the sharp eye kept on the media has a huge bearing on the expenditure cap fixed for each candidate by the Election Commission of India.

In the case of Manipur, the upper limit is Rs 8 lakhs. Documents, which have been specified, of any paid insertion has to be submitted to the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee, which have been set up at the district level as well as State level.

This helps the Election Commission or the State Electoral Office to keep a close tab on the expenditure incurred by each candidate in the hustings.

All these measures are fine, but in the light of the fact that the very understanding of paid news largely falls on grey areas, the apprehension that this could be used to harass or frame charges without much foundation cannot be written off entirely.

This is where the suggestion of the Prime Minister that self regulation of the media establishments is the best policy to check this menace becomes significant.

Whatever the case, it says something very, very significant that an institution like the Election Commission of India has deemed it fit to come out with certain dos and don'ts for the media establishments during election time.

Or should the dos and don'ts be taken as the time to preen for in many ways it says how influential the media is in moulding and shaping public opinion ?