The story that wasn't

IN Media Watch Briefs | 23/02/2014

It took a flurry of emails, phone calls and tweets, apart from an internal inquiry, for the Free Press Journal to publish a front-page retraction on a Valentine's Day story entitled "Helpline flooded with desperate calls before V-Day". The helpline coordinators quoted in the story were aggrieved that no reporter had contacted them and, in any case, they wouldn't have given out confidential details of callers. At least the newspaper took the right call when badgered.

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Amazon resisting voluntary censorship

The new term for self censorship is voluntary censorship, as proposed by companies like Netflix and Hotstar. ET reports that streaming video service Amazon Prime is opposing a move by its peers to adopt a voluntary censorship code in anticipation of the Indian government coming up with its own rules. Amazon is resisting because it fears that it may alienate paying subscribers.

Let the games begin

Clearly, the run to the 2019 elections is on. A journalist received a call from someone saying they were from Aajtak channel and were conducting a survey, asking whom she was going to vote for in 2019. On being told that her vote was secret, the caller assumed she wasn't going to vote for 'Modiji'. The caller, a woman, also didn't identify herself. A month or two earlier the same journalist received a call, this time from a man, asking if she was going to vote for the BSP.