I&B Minister PR Dasmunsi declined to name them, but FTV and SS Music are believed to be among the lot that could be faced with a ban.
NEW DELHI: The Union information and broadcasting ministry will continue to act tough with channels that broadcast ‘obscene’ programmes beyond the time band of 11pm to 6am. Though the ‘watershed’ time band has not been defined, the proposed ‘content code’ is likely to do so.
I&B Minister PR Dasmunsi confirmed that another five to six TV channels are under scrutiny. He declined to name them, but FTV and SS Music are believed to be among the lot that could be faced with a ban.
Last month, the government imposed a two-month ban on AXN for its show, The World’s Sexiest Advertisements. Though the channel has tendered an apology, the ban continues.
Government supervision is not new. Two years ago, the ministry, then headed by BJP leader Sushma Swaraj, made FTV tailor its programmes to suit Indian sensibilities.
Dasmunsi, who was speaking on the sidelines of the Social Editors’ Conference, dismissed talk of ‘moral policing’, saying that only one out of 290 channels has been banned.
History, however, does not bear out his claim. The ministry recently forced a couple of news channels to apologise to viewers after airing clips of Mahatma Gandhi drawn from YouTube. The ministry thought the clips were in ‘poor taste’.
The proposed Broadcast Bill and the content code are expected to comprehensively address issues related to programming and advertisements. Issues related to sting journalism will also be addressed by the bill. According to Dasmunsi, the bill, which will “definitely be introduced in 2007”, will “not gag media freedom”.
The minister also brushed aside any likelihood of news being allowed on private FM radio. “At least, not in my tenure,” he said in reply to a question. Earlier, a committee set up by the Prime Minister’s office had given in-principle approval to news on FM radio.
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