I&B ministry warns media houses against fake news, says journalists found guilty could lose accreditation permanently

New Delhi: The government, on Monday, said the accreditation of a journalist could be permanently cancelled if the scribe is found generating or propagating fake news, as it came out with stringent measures to contain the menace.

As per the amended guidelines for the accreditation of journalists, if the publication or telecast of fake news is confirmed, the accreditation of the concerned journalist would be suspended for a period of six months in the first violation and for one year in case of a second violation.

In case of a third violation, the journalist’s accreditation would be cancelled permanently, the information and broadcasting ministry said in a statement.

It said any complaint of fake news would be referred to the Press Council of India (PCI), if it pertains to print media, and to the News Broadcasters Association (NBA), if it relates to the electronic media, to determine whether the news item is fake or not. This process of determination is expected to be completed within 15 days by these agencies, the ministry said.

Once the complaint is registered for determination of fake news, the accreditation of the journalist, whoever “created and/or propagated” the fake news, will be suspended till it is determined whether the news is fake or not, the ministry said.

The Accreditation Committee of the Press Information Bureau (PIB), which consists of representatives of both the PCI and the NBA, would be reached out for validating any accreditation request of any news media agency, it said.

While examining the requests seeking accreditation, the regulatory agencies would check whether the ‘Norms of Journalistic Conduct’ and ‘Code of Ethics and Broadcasting Standards’, prescribed by the PCI and NBA respectively, are adhered to by the journalists as part of their functioning, the ministry said.

It would be obligatory for journalists to abide by these guidelines, it said.