Restriction on live coverage of terrorist incidents, TV channels asked to adopt ‘time delay-filtration technology’
Karachi, August 07: Live coverage of bloody terrorist incidents promote objectives of terrorists to create terror, hence TV channels have been directed not to cover it live or rather do it with ‘time delay-filtration technology.’
Iftikhar Rashid, Chairman Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) said this after meeting with Pakistan Broadcasters` Association (PBA) in PEMRA Sindh office Karachi on Tuesday.
He said legal action against seven such TV channels has been initiated via Council of Complaints PEMRA’s provincial bodies. He said PBA has agreed upon not to cover any violent, bloody and traumatic terrorist activities Live, as it would serve cause of terrorists.
” Live and repeated coverage of a single terrorist act by over 50 TV channels multiples its magnitude and such anti-law elements get their objectives done by the mediaÃ, Ifftikhar Rashid said and mentioned that Pakistani society has gone traumatized and harassed by such avoidable incidents.
Chairman PEMRA said delay-filter technology would be second option for TV channels if they wanted to cover such events Live, which meant that Live transmissions reach viewers after gap of some seconds during which any extremely violent, obscene and traumatic scene could be filtered before viewers could see them.
He mentioned that joint workshops by PEMRA and PBA to interact with international media on the matter of effects of projecting such objectives of terrorists would be held for the sake of experience sharing purposes.
He mentioned that Voluntary Code of Conduct prepared by PBA was about to be enforced within 10 days as it was in the final stages in which nudity, obscenity and other matters have been defined.
Chairman announced that establishment of ‘Endowment Fund’ via PEMRA and PBA funds have been agreed upon for the welfare of electronic media workers. He said Broadcasters have agreed to contribute while seed money would be provided by PEMRA to initiate it.
Those who met Chairman PEMRA included Jamil Syed, Mir Shakil Rehman, Ghazanfar Ali, Tahir A Khan, Dureed Qureshi, Arshad Zubairi, Aslam Qazi, Jirjees Seeja and Shakil Masood.
Later Chairman PEMRA met Cable Operators Association. He informed that cable operators would be directed to provide ideal place/ number in their cable service so that state TV must get better viewership. He said CAP would be directed not to broadcast films via CD players.
Rana Altaf Majeed, Director General, Enforcement, PEMRA, and Dr. Manzoor Ali Memon, Deputy Director General, PEMRA were present in the meetings.
Source: PPI
Date:8/7/2007
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