A new paid news dodge

IN Media Watch Briefs | 11/10/2014

Candidates caught in paid-news deals, are quickly making payments to newspapers at state governmentâ€‹ advertising rates which are far lower than what other advertisers pay, and show it in their accounts to escape further trouble, Marathi newspaper Loksatta reported on Oct 10. District-level panels set up by the EC to spot them are functioning sporadically though a few notices have been issued. Their number are not commensurate with the surge of obvious paid-news in the newspapers.

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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.