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SUPREMO AMICUS
VOLUME 17 ISSN 2456-9704
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JUDICIAL INTERPRETATION OF
THE FOURTH ESTATE
By D R Shashank
From Symbiosis Law School, Pune
ABSTRACT
The Press which is actually regarded as the
fourth estate is no longer relegated to a fourth
position, its pervasiveness enables it to
command power and influence which, in
many ways, surpasses that of the other three
states. The citizen no longer depends upon
the opposition as the watchdog of authority.
In its true sense the fourth estate should
safeguard democracy and defend public
interest, to expose corruption and check the
abuse of authority. Modern technology has
strengthened the fourth estate to an extent
where it can permeate all walks of life –
political, social and economic. It is
omnipresent, a big brother, watching
everything, everywhere. When other estate
fail, the citizen, the media, through its
sustained campaigns, evokes public
indignation, and spurs the State into speedy
redress. Indeed, no other estate wields the
kind of power and influence on public
opinion that the media does. Freedom of the
press does not occupy a preferred position in
the Indian constitution which does not
recognize a hierarchy of rights. There are
however dicta of the Supreme court
describing freedom of the press “the Ark of
the Covenant of Democracy”, “the most
precious of all the freedoms guaranteed.
Freedom of expression and the freedom of
the press, however precious, like other
fundamental rights is not absolute.it may be
restricted by a law, not by departmental
1 Factors affecting Freedom of the
Press. Nature 138, 795 (1936).
circulates or administrative instructions, and
that too only on the grounds specified in
Article 19 (2) of the Constitution,
furthermore the restriction must be
reasonable the validity of restriction must be
justiciable.
STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Press and media is a medium of social, public
and political intercourse. It is a platform for
expression of opinion, a means of
communication of facts and circumstances of
public affairs. As the fourth pillar of State, it
is an educator of the people. There are
numerous occurrences when the opportunity
of press and media has been stifled by various
factors such as government intervention,
legal factors, the pressure of public or semi-
public bodies may be exerted in various ways
which make it more and more difficult to
voice emphatically the grievance of an
individual or group against authority and
monopoly but absolute freedom of the press
is neither possible nor desirable. There are
strong arguments for keeping restrictions and
external pressure of every kind to a
minimum1. This research paper aims to
identify the rights guaranteed to the press and
media and the reasonable restrictions
imposed for the safeguard of public policy
and how judiciary interpret different facets of
violation of rights. In the era where the fate
of the press is bound up with the fate of
democracy, and in any type of State the press
will have to fight harder to justify its
existence against competition and
encroachments of many kinds its high time
that a balanced should be maintained
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between violation and protection of rights of
the press and media.
LITERATURE REVIEW
1. 21ST CENTURY JOURNALISM IN
INDIA: SAGE: BY NALINI RAJAN
21st Century Journalism in India is a way
breaking book that takes a gander at the
practices and hypotheses of news coverage in
the 21st century. This assortment of
compositions by rehearsing columnists is
maybe one of a kind in that they have turned
the focus on their own calling. The book
covers an in-depth analysis of the practices
and theories of journalism in this century.
This collection of writings by practising
journalists is perhaps unique in that they have
turned the spotlight on their own profession.
2. SORABJEE (2018) ON ‘INDIAN
EXPRESS’
He writes that the law of sedition is being
misused in recent times. Under the Indian
constitution, Article 19 (1) (a) guarantees the
right to speech and expression to the citizen
of India, but this right is not absolute as it
comes with reasonable restriction. It can be
restricted under Article 19 (2) if it possesses
a threat to the public order or security of the
Nation. While adopting Indian constitution,
the insertion of sedition as a ground to
restriction of speech under Article 19 (2) of
the constitution was questioned while making
the draft, as it was used as a weapon by
colonials to suppress Indian nationalists
during the struggle for independence.
Though, sedition is a criminal offense under
IPC Section-124A which authorizes life
imprisonment and fine, if found convicted.
Sedition is defined as an act that has the
2 Book preface: Facets of the media law by Madhavi
Goradia Divan
potential to incite hatred or violence upon the
state. It should be noted that fair criticism of
government or administration does not comes
under sedition but incitement to violence or
threat is. The author acknowledges that
sedition has been misused in recent times but
also says that solely erasing of the law won't
remove the dilemma as there have been many
laws that are abused. The honour of the
Indian state can only be protected if the
provision is rightly understood.
3. FACETS OF MEDIA LAW: BY
MADHAVI GORADIA DIVAN
The title of the book facets of media law is a
misnomer and is attributable to the modesty
of the author. In reality the book is a mini
encyclopaedia of the multiple dimensions of
media law of which freedom of expression
and freedom of the press are essential
components. The book illustrates various
aspects of the dimensions of the extent to
which rights and restrictions of press and
media are in loop. Issues such as the
infamous Radia tapes controversy, live
coverage of the 26/11 terrorist attacks in
Mumbai, the arab spring and the role that the
media and the modern communications
technology played in those momentous
events, and on the ongoing debate on media
self-regulation are addressed with insight and
clarity in media writing. In the time when the
judiciary is time and again accused of
encroaching on the executive and legislate
domains and, on the other hand, the fourth
estate is criticized for usurping the functions
of the judiciary, the relevance and importance
of this work to law practitioners, students and
the general public cannot be underestimated.2
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RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
The job and significance of media in a
majority rules system are very much
perceived. Article 19(1) (a) of the
Constitution of India, which gives the right to
speak freely of discourse and articulation
incorporates inside its ambit, opportunity of
the press. The presence of a free, autonomous
and ground-breaking media is the foundation
of a majority rules system, particularly of an
exceptionally blended society like India.
Media isn't just a medium to communicate
one's perspectives, yet it is additionally liable
for building popular assessment on different
subjects of territorial, national and universal
plan. The expanded job of the media in the
present globalized and technically
knowledgeable world was suitably placed in
the expressions of Justice Hand of the United
States Supreme Court when he stated, "The
hand that rules the press, the radio, the screen,
and the far-spread magazine, governs the
nation". In any case, as Indian culture today
has gotten to some degree flimsy on its 3
legs-the official, the lawmaking body and the
legal executive, the assurance of Article 19
(1)(a) has offered ascend to a fourth column
for example media. With this expanded job of
the media, the requirement for its
responsibility and polished skill in reportage
can't be underscored enough. The
opportunity of the media must be practiced
inside sensible limits. With incredible force
comes extraordinary duty. So also, the
opportunity under Article 19(1) (a) is
correlative with the obligation not to damage
any law. This paper is an endeavor to
perceive the job the press and media is
playing in our nation and to feature the
3 Ramlila Maidan Incident, re
territories of their capacities where there is a
necessity of lawful guidelines.
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
This is a purely exploratory and interpretative
research. The analysis is done on the basis of
secondary data accessible on the internet,
websites, research papers, newspapers, books
etc. In the dictum of qualitative and
quantitative research it is primarily
qualitative.
CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISIONS ON
THE FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND
EXPRESSION
“Were it left to me to decide whether we
should have a government without
newspapers, or newspapers without a
government, I should not hesitate a moment
to prefer the latter”
The freedom of speech and expression has
been described as the mother of all liberties.
The freedom of speech and expression is
regarded as the first condition of liberty. With
the development of law in India the right to
freedom of speech and expression has taken
within its ambit the right to receive
information as well as the right of press3.
[1.1] CONSTITUTIONAL STATUS
The press and media derive its rights from
Article 19(1) of the Indian Constitution.
Therefore, the rights enjoyed by press and
media is no less than the rights enjoyed by the
citizens of the country. the freedom of the
journalist is and ordinary part of the freedom
of the subject and to whatever lengths the
subject in general may go, so also may the
journalist, apart from the statute law, his
privilege is no other and no higher.4
4 Channing Arnold v. King Emperor, AIR 1914 PC
116
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Therefore, the press and media have to work
in accordance to the law as with the rights
guaranteed, there are also reasonable
restrictions imposed.
[1.2] FACETS OF SPEECH AND
EXPRESSION UNDER ARTCILE
19(1)(a)
The freedom of speech and expression is a
dynamic concept that has evolved with time
and advances in technology. Briefly, Article
19 (1)(a) covers the right to opinions by way
of writing, printing, picture, word of mouth
or in any other manner. It includes the right
to propagate and the freedom of
communication. The communication of ideas
may be through any medium, newspaper,
magazine or movie, including the electronic
and audio-visual media.5
[1.2.1] RIGHT TO CIRCULATE
The right to free speech and expression
brings along the right not only to publish but
also to circulate information and opinion.
Without the right to circulate, the right to free
speech and expression would have little
meaning. The freedom of circulation has
been held as essential as the freedom of
publication.6 In Sakal Papers (P) Ltd. v.
Union of India7 the Supreme Court held that
the State could not make laws which directly
affect the circulation of a newspaper for that
would amount to a violation of the freedom
of speech. The newspapers should be left free
to determine their pages and their
circulation.8 Any restriction leading to a loss
5 S. Rangrajan v. P. Jagjivan Ram, (1989) 2 SCC 574 6 Romesh Thappar v. State of Madras, AIR 1950 SC
124 7 AIR 1962 SC 305 8 Bennett Coleman & Co. v, Union of India (1972) 2
SCC 788
of advertising revenue would affect
circulation and thereby, impinge on the
freedom of speech.9 In Indian Express
Newspapers (Bombay) (P) Ltd. v. Union of
India, the Supreme Court held that the
expression “freedom of the press”, though
not expressly used in Article 19, was
comprehended within Article 19 (1)(a) and
meant freedom from interference from
authority which would have the effect
interference with the content and the
circulation of newspapers.10the court held
that any attempt to deny the right to
circulation and propagation of ideas must be
frowned upon, unless it falls within the
mischief of article 19 (2). 11
[1.2.2] RIGHT TO DISSENT
Freedom of speech and expression covers the
right to criticize the government, which is the
pre requisite of a healthy democracy. The
draft constitution proposed that laws
penalizing sedition would be an exception to
free speech. there is no room under our
constitution for a more restrictive view for
the alternative would lead to standardization
of ideas either by legislatures, quotes or
dominant political or community groups.12 In
Directorate General of Doordarshan V Anand
Patwardhan, the supreme court held that the
state cannot prevent open discussion, no
matter how hateful to its policies.13 A society
wedded to the rule of law, cannot trample
upon the rights of those who assert views
which may be regarded as unpopular or
contrary to the views shared by the
9 Ibid, (SCC)813, para. 43 10 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay)(P) Ltd. v.
UOI, Ibid, (SCC) 693, para. 84 11 LIC V Manubhai D. Shah. , (1992) 3 SCC 637 12 Terminiello V Chicago, 93 L Ed 1131. 13 (2006) 8 SCC 433
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majority.14the right of a playwright, of the
artist, writer, and the poet will be reduced to
husk if the freedom to portray a message –
whether it be in canvas, prose or verse – is to
depend upon the popular perception of the
acceptability of that message.15
[1.2.3[ RIGHT TO RECEIVE
INFORMATION
The freedom of speech and expression
comprises the right to express, publish and
propagate information through circulation
and also to receive information. This was
held by the supreme court in a series of
judgement which have discussed the right to
information in varied contexts – from
advertisements enabling the citizens to get
vital information about life saving drugs,16to
the right of voters to antecedents of electoral
candidates.17
[1.2.4] REPORTING LEGISLATIVE
PROCEEDINGS
The right to report legislative proceedings
has often been curtailed in the name of
legislative privilege available to both
parliament and the state assemblies.
Legislative to special rights conferred by the
constitution on parliament and the state
legislature to ensure freedom of speech for
the legislators, to enable them to discuss and
debate matters of importance without the fear
of inviting liability of any sort.18
It is the essence of parliamentary system of
government that people’s representatives
should be free to express themselves without
14 Anand Chintamani Dighe V State of Maharashtra,
(2002) 2 Mah Lj 14 15 Anand Chintamani Dighe V State of Maharashtra,
(2002) 2 Mah Lj 14 16 Tata Press ltd V MTNL, (1995) 5 SCC 139. 17 Union of India V Assn For Democratic Reforms,
(2002) 5 SCC 294
fear of legal consequences. What they say is
only subject to the discipline of the rule of
parliament, the good sense of the members
and the control of proceedings by the
speaker. The court have no say in the matter
and should really have none.19
[1.2.5] REPORTING COURT
PROCEEDING
The press has privilege’s on account of the
citizen’s right to be informed on matters of
public importance. lord Donaldson in
Attorney GENERAL v. GUARDIAN
newspapers ltd. observed “press and media
are the eyes and ears of the general public.
They act on behalf of the general public.
Their right to know and their right to publish
is neither more nor less than that of the
general public. Indeed, it is that of the general
public for whom they are trustees.20
[1.2.6] REPORTING LEGISLATIVE
PROCEEDINGS
Legislative privilege refers to special rights
conferred by the constitution on the
parliament and the state legislators to ensure
freedom of speech for the legislators, to
enable them to discuss and debate matters of
importance without the fear of inviting
liability of any sort.21In an age of information
and accountability, where the live telecast of
the legislative proceeding has become
mandatory,22The whole concept of legislative
privilege and contempt is anachronistic. In
the Searchlight case23 a notice for breach of
privilege was issued against the editor of
18 Constitution of india Arts.105,194. 19 Tej Kiran Jain V. N. Sanjiva Reddy, (1970) 2 SCC
272 20 (1990) 1 AC 109 21 Constitution of India, article 105,194. 22 Gazette notification number 16 (1) 23 AIR 1959 SC 395.
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search right, a well-known English daily for
publishing an expunged portion of the
proceedings of the Bihar state assembly the
editors petition in the supreme court,
complaining that his right to freedom of
speech had been violated, was dismissed. The
Supreme Court held that the report of an
expunged portion of a member’s speech
would, prima facie, amount to a breach of
privilege.
VIOLATION OF RIGHTS BY PRESS AND
MEDIA
[2.1] INFRIENGEMENT OF
RIGHT TO PRIVACY
The Supreme Court of India first recognized
in Kharak Singh v. State of U.P. and Others
1964 24that there is a right to privacy implicit
in the constitution under Article 21of the
Constitution which states that, “No person
shall be deprived of his life and liberty except
according to procedure established by law.”
There is also a right to privacy guaranteed by
Indian laws.25 PUCL v. UOI26, the courts
observed that the right to privacy is an
essential ingredient of the right to life.
Unlawful attacks on the honour and
reputation of a person can invite an action in
tort and / or criminal law/Right to privacy,
once incorporated as a fundamental right, is
wide enough to encroach into any sphere of
activity. The conferment of such a right has
become extremely difficult with the
advancement of technology and the social
networking sites. But the other side of the
picture is that right to privacy of a person
includes the right to seclude personal
24 AIR1964 SCR (1) 332 25 Justice K.S.Puttaswamy(Retd) vs Union Of
India (2017) 10 SCC 1 26 AIR 1997 SC 568.
information. The extent to which the realm of
privacy of each person should remain is
subjective, which might differ from person to
person. State of Uttar Pradesh v Raj Narain, 27the Supreme Court of India held that Article
19(1) (a), in addition, to guaranteeing
freedom of speech and expression,
guarantees the right to receive information on
matters concerning public interest. However,
more recently concerns over balancing the
right to information with the right to privacy
have been raised, especially, by controversies
like the Radia-tapes28. The question, where
there is a conflict, which should prevail over
the other, is well explained by bringing in the
concept of ‘public interest’ and ‘public
morality’. The publication of personal
information of an individual without his
consent or approval is justified if such
information forms part of public records
including Court records.
The Indian media violates privacy in day-to-
day reporting, like overlooking the issue of
privacy to satisfy morbid curiosity. In the
landmark judge’s asset case, CPIO, Supreme
Court of India vs Subhash Chandra
Agarwal,29 the court recognised the tension
between the right to information and the right
to privacy, especially, with respect to public
persons. The court commented: “A private
citizen's privacy right is undoubtedly of the
same nature and character as that of a public
servant. Therefore, it would be wrong to
assume that the substantive rights of the two
differ.”
[2.2] DISRUPTION OF PUBLIC
ORDER
27 1975 AIR 865, 1975 SCR (3) 333. 28 Ratan N Tata v. Union of India and ors. 29 W.P. (C) 288/2009
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‘Public order’ is an expression of wide
connotation and signifies “that state of
tranquility which prevails among the
members of political society as a result of
internal regulations enforced by the
Government which they have established.”
Public order is not mere maintenance of law
and order in the society, public order literally
means public peace, safety and tranquility.
Anything that disturbs the regular public
tranquility and create unrest among people is
against public order.
The insertion of “public order” as a ground
under Article 19(2) by the constitution 1st
amendment act , 1951 was an attempt to get
over the effect of the decision of the supreme
court in Romesh Thapar 30and Brij Bhushan 31 case , the government of madras had issued
an order imposing a ban on the entry and the
circulation of the journal Cross Roads in the
state which involve disturbances of public
tranquility and are in theory offences against
public order. The court in the Brij Bhushan
case explicitly held that unless a law
restricting freedom of speech and expression
is directed solely against the undermining of
the security of the state or its overthrow , such
law cannot fall within the restrictions under
clause (2) of Article 19 , although the
restrictions which it seek to impose may have
been conceived generally in the interests of
public order.
In a country like India, where public opinion
is majorly shaped by media, it becomes
necessary that the information provided
should come with necessary filters so as to
prevent public unrest. Nowadays it is a trend
among the news channels, newspaper
publishers to hype the news unnecessarily
just for the sake of viewership has resulted in
30 AIR 1950 SC 124 : 1950 SCR 594.
the tarnishing of an individual or
community's image for which they tend to
manipulate the facts. Therefore, by
“necessary filters” it is meant that
manipulation of facts shouldn’t be done.
In the insurgency hit Kashmir valley, spread
of social media and cell phones has created
the phenomenon of ‘flash crowds’ at the site
of encounters. In addition, media like face
book and you tube are being used to great
advantage to carry out propaganda. As in the
most recent case of the introduction of CAA
and NRC, the news channels failed to provide
adequate information with regards to the
bills. If we talk about the illiterate population
of the country who can’t read the entire bill
will fail to understand the basic essence of the
act and have a biased opinion about it. It was
noticed during the protests against NRC and
CAA, many of them did not even have
complete knowledge about the bill. Hence, it
is the responsibility of the fourth estate to
curb the activities which disrupt public order
by providing complete and authentic
information without putting its own personal
opinion into it.
[2.3] DISCLOSING IDENTITY
OF RAPE VICTIMS.
“No person can print or publish in print,
electronic, social media, etc. the name of the
victim or even in a remote manner disclose
any facts which can lead to the victim being
identified and which should make her
identity known to the public at large. The bar
extends to anything which can even remotely
be used to identify the victim,” a Bench of
Justices Madan B. Lokur and Deepak Gupta
laid down the rule in their judgment.
31 AIR 1950 SC 129: 1950 51 CrI LJ 1525.
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In the ‘Nirbhaya’s’ rape case, the court held
that the bar on disclosure under Section
228A(2) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 was
not confined to just the name of the victim but
actually meant that the “identity of the victim
should not be discernible from any matter
published in the media”.
In a country like India, the harsh reality is
when a woman is victimized of cases of
sexual nature the families are not even ready
to accept her. The so-called honor of the
family is a priority even before the life of the
daughter, many rape cases, sexual
harassment cases, molestation cases and
other cases of such nature does not even get
reported so as to protect the honor of the
family. In such a circumstance mental
harassment caused by her family further
deteriorate the psychological well-being. The
victim time and again gets humiliated when
she has to be presented in front of the court
and disclose all the minute details. Even then,
media publicizes such cases and cause them
all the more humiliation. Asifa rape case, the
rape of a 6-year-old girl in Kathua, Nirbhaya
rape case in Delhi, Priyanka Reddy’s rape
case in Hyderabad are few instances where as
per the law these names should have been
confidential and is a blatant violation of
Section 228 (A).
On December 11, 2018, the bench in the
Nirbhaya’s rape case held that “No person
can print or publish in print, electronic, social
media, etc. The name of the victim or even in
a remote manner disclose any facts which can
lead to the victim being identified and which
should make her identity known to the public
at large.”
And no sooner could it have happened when
rape case in Hyderabad happened and the
pictures of the victim were published all over
the media. All the details about the victim
was in the limelight. The media could take
the defense that the pictures were taken
before the women was identified, but what
about the fact that even after she was
identified, all the news channels displayed all
her pictures before and after the rape,
revealed her age, her profession and every
detail of hers. Disclosure of such personal
details not only hampers the mental peace of
the family but also gives chance to the so-
called moral police of the society to make
comments and moreover people tend to
assassinate the character of the victim itself.
[2.4] NATIONAL SECURITY
It is in the enlightened self-interest of media
practitioners to contribute, as well as protect
National Security. Although as members of
the 4th estate of the realm, the press has a
greater responsibility, therefore the press
must be faithful to its code of ethics. Truthful
and honest reporting must be the order of the
day. Press partisanship must be avoided at all
costs. There should be no display of
primordial tribal and ethnic considerations,
religious fanaticism and corruption via the
demand and acceptance of the so-called
brown envelopes. Fake news and hate
speeches should be ‘no go areas’ for any
responsible media practitioner.
National Security in the true sense is of
utmost importance and editors must carefully
scrutinize what they put out in their
newspapers and / or newscasts, as the case
may be, in order not to jeopardize the peace
and tranquillity of the nation. Indian media in
relation to coverage, discussion and analysis
of India’s national security matters has
displayed a deplorable insensitivity to both
national interests and national security
interests. In this respect the electronic media
is more to blame with their attempts to
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encapsulate complex national security issues
into thirty second sound "bites".
[1.1.2] Instances where national
security was put on stake by media.
1. The IC-814 hijacking to Kandahar case
where the entire electronic and print media
had gone berserk highlighting the heightened
passion of the relatives of the passengers
without keeping the wider perspective in
mind which pushed the government to take a
decision which was not in the national
interest.
2. Pakistani Proxy War in J&K: The media has
been absolutely reckless. India's vital
sensitivities are continually disregarded and
there is a challenge to embrace outrageous
progressive perspectives. One subject
regularly focused on is of Kashmiri
estrangement. Had that been thus, Pakistan at
this point would have dispensed a
Bangladesh on India.
3. India's Military Mobilization December
2001: Pakistan didn't need to utilize ISI to
keep an eye on India's activation endeavors
and moves of its key arrangements. The
Indian media was doing that job.
4. The Rafale deal: in the matter of procurement
of 36 jets from France has been a hots for
various controversies related to the cost of the
plane , the media further added to the chaos
and tried to defame government and ask them
to provide detail even when as per ‘Article-
10’ of the Inter-Governmental Agreement
(IGA) between Government of India and
Government of France on the purchase of
Rafael aircraft, the protection of the classified
information and material exchanged under
IGA is governed by the provisions of the
Security Agreement signed between the two
nations signed in 2008.”most of the
confidential detail related to the arms and
ammunition were revealed by the media
Indian media needs to be reined in on national
security issues does not have a wider
perspective of India’s national security
issues, National security of India is
paramount and the Indian media under the
guise of ‘press freedom’ cannot claim
unfettered sway and freedom for non-
objective means. India’s survival as a nation-
state is at stake due to both external and
internal threats. The armed forces, the para-
military forces, and the police are staking and
losing their lives to defend the country
against such threats. Hence Indian
governments of any political hue should not
permit trivializing or jeopardizing India’s
national security issues by the media.
CRITICAL ANALYSIS OF EMERGING
TRENDS, MEDIA ETHICS AND
REGULATION
Putting restrictions on the freedom of press is
a sensitive issue. Nonetheless, the concept of
absolute freedom can never prevail as it can
cause conflict of interests and further can
exploit the rights guaranteed. Therefore,
rights always entail obligations to respect
certain boundaries. However, restriction on
the various forms of freedom of expression
including the press is a common phenomenon
in every form of government across the
globe. There are certain general exceptions to
this right and such issues include security of
state, friendly relation with foreign state,
public order, decency and morality, contempt
of court, defamation, incitement to an offence
and sovereignty and integrity of India. USA
being a champion of free press, imposes
certain restrictions under the first amendment
of its constitution. The SC in Saia v. New
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York32 held that the restrictions as imposed
by law should be reasonable and
proportionate not arbitrary.
[3.1] INCREASED TRANSPERANCY
AND ACCOUNTABILITY
Transparency and accountability in public
life were significantly enhanced by the
privatization and growth of the audio-visual
media in the 1990s. in a country where 100%
literacy is still a goal, the impact of tv has
been phenomenal. The audio-visual medium
has the advantage of offering live coverage
that arouses responses and motions in a
manner with which reports in cold print, no
matter how incessive, simply cannot compete
Investigative journalism and sting operation
graphically capture the extent of the rot in
public life. the tehalka stings of 2001, known
as operation west end raised a storm and lead
to the resignation of the then defense, Gourge
Fernandis and the then BJP president
Bangaru Laxman another sting operation
Duryodhana exposed 11 members of
parliament taking cases in return for asking
questions in parliament33, hence were forced
to resign with exemplary promptitude.
[3.2] SENSATIONALISM AND TRIAL
BY MEDIA
There is another side to media revolution that
has not been quiet so commendable. Survival
in this intentionally competitive environment
depends on ratings and frantic mantra of the
times in TRP’s. India has more 24-hr news
network in any other country. The result of
this intense competition is an obsession with
grabbing “eyeballs” and the desperation to
carry “breaking stories” even on issues
unworthy of prominence. this results in
journalistic ethics and proprietary being
32 334 US 558
compromised. a fallout of the obsession for
breaking stories is the propensity to conduct
media trails in pending cases in including
pending criminal cases. The media often
drums up support in favour of or against an
accused. Accused persons and tearful
victim’s families are seen being extensively
interviewed on tv resulting streamline of
people’s opinion due to which it becomes
difficult for a judge to act independently.
[3.3] NEWS AS BUSINESS
Page 3, which started as a colourful break
from the monotony of the regular columns
has become a huge source of revenue of
papers. No longer are the purchases inserts
confined to the certain section of the paper
they have crept into the main section of the
paper and are indistinct able from the news
items. Earlier profit was farthest from the
agenda of these papers and they survived on
financial support from benevolent and
patriotic industry now, news has become a
sellable commodity for the consumer rather
than an instrument of intellectual debate and
social change.
[3.4] PAID NEWS
The practice of paying for editorial content
has cast a cloud on the Indian media for
several years. This practice actively misleads
and misinforms the public. in 2009 the media
in Maharashtra came up with “coverage
packages” which mend a candidate was
required to pay for coverage and if he did not,
he wasn’t covered at all. Simply no pay no
news. Indeed, the power of the politicians has
been overwhelmed by the power of media
Paid news is a threat to the very essence of
democracy this practice not only eliminates
real news but drowns out the election
33 www.Indiatodaygroup.com/itoday/20060102.
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prospects of those who cannot compete with
money power.
Simply put forward money power has
become the driving force of the media and
hence the driving force of democracy.
[3.5] THE ATTACK OF 26/11
COVERAGE AND SELF REGULATION
coverage of the Mumbai was an excellent
example of how national interest and security
can be betrayed and human life’s jeopardised
by indiscreet and unfiltered reporting the
chief of naval staff criticised the ,media as “a
disabling effects” a new amendment was
mooted by the ministry of information and
broadcasting to the existing programme court
under the cable television networks rule
1994, to introduce restrictions on live
coverage of war or violent law an order
situations, among other things.
THE DRAFT REGISTRATION OF PRESS
AND PERIODICALS BILL,2019
Failing on genuine concerns like paid news
which were the subject of prior draft
revisions to the bygone press and registration
of books (PRB) act, 1867, the government is
currently proposing a beefed-up form of the
provincial period law that could bring news
sites under the domain of official regulation
for the first time.
Section 18 of the provisions of the draft
Registration of Press and Periodical (RPP)
Bill, 2019 – released by the Ministry of
Information and Broadcasting on Tuesday –
stipulates:
“The publishers of news on Digital Media
shall register themselves with the Registrar
34 The Economist, March 23,2013, “A rotten deal”
of Newspapers of India in such manner and
giving such particulars as may be
prescribed.”
Until now, no news or current affairs
website in India has to register as there are
tens of thousands of them since even blogs
and social media pages which carry news or
opinion would be considered publishers of
news on digital media now has to “register”
with the government or follow any rules or
regulations other than what are normally
applicable for any form of speech or
expression.
CONCLUSION AND
RECOMMENDATIONS
We believe society gains more from a free
press than it loses from the tabloid’s
occasional abuse of defenceless people…
Fleet street does not have an impeccable
record. It has broken the law and victimized
innocent people. But it also has, time and
again, exposed the lies and incompetence of
politicians.34
The Supreme Court of India has never failed
to interpret Article 19 (1) with a wider
dimension in accordance with reasonable
restrictions as stated in Article 19(2). The
Right to information goes in hand with the
Right of Expression. Meaning, where one has
the right to know should also have the
respective sources to know. Press and media
being the fourth estate in a democracy, acts
as “ears and eyes” of the general public. After
over six decades of the Indian Republic, the
basic foundations of the freedom of the press
are firmly in place. Society has always leaned
in favour of Freedom of Speech and
Expression and therefore, courts must be very
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cautious while upholding the reasonable
restrictions. With the technological
development, it has helped every section of
the society and kept all of us updated about
political, social, economic and every other
aspect. However, many a times the fourth
estate has failed to fulfil the obligations by
breaching the provisions of reasonable
restrictions. The increasing competition
among the publishers is diminishing the very
essence of press and media which is to
provide quality information. Creating unrest
to the public order, causing threat to national
security, breaching the right to privacy by
revealing the personal information about the
rape victims are some of the major instances
where the press and media has blatantly
violated the law.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
1. Without forcing brutal limitations, freedom
of speech and expression and opportunity of
the press ought to be ensured and advanced
in equality with mindful, straightforward and
responsible news-casting. All the while,
sensible limitations ought to be kept up and
the writers ought to comply with the code of
conduct, social standards, and qualities in the
spread of news, perspectives, pictures and
audio-visual clips.
2. Press opportunity ought not be utilized to
twist data attacking the expert traits of writers
who are viewed as the heart of a country.
Columnists and freethinkers ought to recall
the maxim “salus populi est suprema lex”
which means welfare of people is the highest
law,
3. Press and media should be more sensitive
while the cases of sexual nature are being
published. The provisions of Section 228 of
the Indian Penal Code, 1860 must be
followed strictly and the right to privacy of
any citizen must not be violated.
4. There is a dire need for:
(i) Principles of responsible broadcasting
(ii) Institutional arrangements of self-regulation
5. The press council of India be given more
teeth beyond the power to merely admonish
or pass strictures against the errant paper by
being conferred with power to impose
penalties against errant individuals and
organizations
6. Journalists be assured about secrecy when
they act as whistleblowers on paid news.
7. During the time of election, the press council
of India and other regulating bodies should
work in collaboration with election
commission of India to eradicate
malpractices like paid news and excessive
advertising of a few, leaving the rest.
*****