By Editorial
Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) is taking action and working on formulating a code for TV content.
Every now and then, some section of the media will do something which would be deemed as outrageous and unjustified by the viewers, leading to calls for something to be done about the ‘irresponsibility and sensationalism’ of the media, particularly the electronic kind. This may not have been what media critics had in mind, but now the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (Pemra) is taking action and working on formulating a code for TV content. There are few details of what appear in this code but the earlier signs are ominous. Both Information Minister Firdous Ashiq Awan and a Pemra official have said that the code will seek to protect the country’s socio-cultural and religious values and work for the sake of national interest. How such amorphous terms are defined could have a significant bearing on the freedom of the media.
Already, for the sake of national unity, Pemra has ‘advised’ the medianot to interview Baloch separatist leaders. Once Pemra codifies its power to advise channels on content, strictly in consideration of the national interest of course, we could end up with a scenario where the regulatory authority is dictating every aspect of content.
Pemra may not be the solution but that does not mean that there isn’t a problem with the media. In a rush to break news, channels take all sorts of liberties with facts, run pictures and videos of dead and dying people and can end up interfering with necessary police work at the scene of a crime rather than just reporting on it. Talk shows frequently cross a line of decency and, as we saw in the case of Maya Khan, morning show hosts see themselves as the final arbiter of morality. The solution here, though, is not more government regulation. What we need instead is for all channels to devise a common code of conduct and then have an independent body to ensure that everyone implements it.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 29th, 2012.
Hello Webmaster, I noticed that http://www.shamsulislamnaz.com/2012/02/regulating-the-media-2/ is ranking pretty low on Google and has a low Google PageRank. Now the Google PageRank is how Google is able to see how relevant your webpage is compared to all the other webpages online, if you cannot rank high at the top of Google, then you will NOT get the traffic you need. Now usually trying to get to the top of Google costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars and very highly optimized targeted marketing campaigns that takes a team of experts months to achieve. However, we can show you how to get to the top of Google with no out of pocket expenses (free traffic), no stupid ninja tricks, no silly mind control techniques, and this will be all white hat with no blackhat software or tactics that could possibly land you on bad terms with Google and put you in the dreaded “Google Sandbox”. We’ll show you how to easily capture all the targeted traffic you need, for free, multiple ways to land fast (not months) first-page rankings in Google and other major search engines (Bing, Yahoo, Ask, etc), even show you strategies on how to earn daily commissions just try Ranking Top of Google, please check out our 5 minute video.
Good blogging!
Hey! I was surfing arround on Yahoo and found your website. Some good information in here! I also have a website . Please feel free to leave a comment there.
I am really impressed together with your writing abilities in addition to using the layout in your blog.