Media Laws and Ethics Questions and Answers

Answer: B

The restrictions are imposed by Article 19(2).

Article 19(1)(a) guarantees every citizen the freedom of speech and expression, which includes freedom of the press. Article 19(2) then lets the State make laws imposing reasonable restrictions on that freedom in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India, the security of the State, friendly relations with foreign States, public order, decency or morality, or in relation to contempt of court, defamation or incitement to an offence.

Article 19(1)(a) is the right itself, not the restriction. Article 20 deals with protection in respect of conviction for offences; Article 20(2) is the bar on double jeopardy, and Article 20 has no clause (1)(a).

Answer: A

The statement that is not correct is Internet is a very easy medium to regulate within national jurisdiction.

The internet is hard to regulate nationally because content is hosted and routed across borders, can be mirrored instantly, and is produced by millions of users rather than a few licensed publishers. A state can block or demand takedowns, but it cannot control the medium the way it can license a broadcaster.

The other three are standard descriptions of internet governance. Because users are hard to reach, much of the burden falls on intermediaries such as internet service providers and platforms. Many national and international bodies take part (governments, ICANN, the ITU, standards bodies). And the network grew in an academic and libertarian culture of de facto freedom from control.

Answer: A

The difference is that libel is written and slander is oral untrue defamatory statement.

Both are forms of defamation, a false statement that harms a person's reputation in the eyes of others. Libel is defamation in a permanent form such as print, writing, pictures or a broadcast; slander is defamation in a transient form, usually spoken words or gestures. In India both fall under Sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code and in civil law as torts.

The second option reverses the two terms. 'No difference' is wrong because the law treats them as distinct forms, and 'libel is defamation, slander is not' is wrong because slander is defamation too, only in spoken form.

Answer: C

The Act is the Information Technology Act, 2000.

The IT Act gives legal recognition to electronic records and digital signatures and is the main law on cyber activity in India, covering offences such as hacking and data theft, intermediary liability (Section 79) and the government's power to block online content (Section 69A).

The Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 governs cable television operators and their programme and advertising codes, not the internet. The Airports Authority of India Act, 1994 set up the body that manages civil airports. The Right to Information Act, 2005 gives citizens access to information held by public authorities.

Answer: B

The media enterprise should promptly and prominently retract with regrets.

The Press Council of India's Norms of Journalistic Conduct say that publishing a wrong or incorrect map is a very serious offence because it adversely affects the territorial integrity of the country, and that the newspaper should publish a prompt and prominent retraction with regrets. Prominence matters: the correction must reach the same readers the error did.

Apologising only is not enough without retracting the map. Treating it as part of freedom of speech ignores that the freedom does not cover publishing false matter on the country's borders. Writing to the ministry does not correct the error in the readers' minds, which is what the norm requires.

Answer: B

The news organisation was the BBC.

The Hutton Inquiry (2003-04), chaired by Lord Hutton, investigated the death of the weapons expert David Kelly, who had been identified as the source of a BBC report by Andrew Gilligan claiming that the government had 'sexed up' its dossier on Iraq's weapons. Hutton's report of January 2004 cleared the government and severely criticised the BBC's editorial and management processes, and the BBC chairman Gavyn Davies and Director-General Greg Dyke resigned.

CNN, Fox News and CNBC are American networks and were not the subject of this British inquiry.

Answer: B

Plagiarism is taking someone else's words or ideas and passing them off as one's own.

In journalism it covers copying another reporter's work, lifting quotations or passages without credit, and reusing a rival publication's scoop as if it were original reporting. It is a breach of honesty towards readers and of the original author's rights.

The other options are different ethical breaches. Making up quotations or sources is fabrication. Pretending to be someone other than a reporter is misrepresentation or deception in newsgathering. Accepting gifts or bribes from sources is a conflict of interest and corruption. All are serious, but none is plagiarism.

Answer: B

The reporter should publish only after the rumour has been confirmed as true and it has some news value (the paper prints 'its has').

A rumour about a public official's private life can destroy a reputation and, if false, is defamatory. Ethical practice therefore requires verification first. Even a true story about private conduct should be published only when there is a public interest in it, for example where it bears on the official's public duties, misuse of office or hypocrisy on matters of public policy.

Publishing immediately to beat rivals puts speed ahead of truth. A reputable source (spelt 'remour' in the paper) is not proof, since even good sources pass on unverified talk. Never publishing goes too far, because a verified story of genuine public interest can be legitimate news.

Answer: C

The incorrect pair is Film-CBFI.

Films in India are certified by the CBFC, the Central Board of Film Certification, set up under the Cinematograph Act, 1952 (it was called the Central Board of Film Censors until 1983). There is no 'CBFI', so the pair is wrong.

The other three are correct. The Press Council of India (PCI), a statutory body under the Press Council Act, 1978, oversees newspapers. The News Broadcasting Standards Authority (NBSA) is the self-regulatory body set up by the News Broadcasters Association for news channels. The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), founded in 1985, is the self-regulatory body for advertising.

Answer: D

The permitted limit was 26%.

Under India's FDI policy in force in 2018, foreign investment in the publishing of newspapers and periodicals dealing with news and current affairs was capped at 26 per cent, through the government approval route. The low cap reflects the long-standing policy of keeping control of the Indian news press in Indian hands.

100 per cent was allowed for scientific, technical and specialty magazines and for facsimile editions of foreign newspapers, not for news publications. 49 per cent was the cap for news channels uplinking at that time, and 76 per cent is not a print media limit.