pci report on paid news

8/13/2019 PCI Report on Paid News

1/71

Revised draft report prepared on April 01, 2010, for circulation among members of the

Press Council of India

Paid News:

How corruption in the Indian media undermines democracy

Preface

The fifteenth general elections to the Lo !abha too place in April"#a$ 200% and inorder to ensure free and fair coverage b$ the media, the Press Council of India issued

guidelines applicable to both government authorities and the press& After the elections, a

disturbing trend 'as highlighted b$ sections of the media, that is, pa$ment of mone$ b$candidates to representatives of media companies for favourable coverage or the

phenomenon popularl$ no'n as (paid ne's)&

The deception or fraud that such (paid ne's) entails taes place at three levels& The

reader of the publication or the vie'er of the television programme is deceived intobelieving that 'hat is essentiall$ an advertisement is in fact, independentl$ produced

ne's content& *$ not officiall$ declaring the e+penditure incurred on planting (paidne's) items, the candidate standing for election violates the Conduct of lection Rules,

1%-1, 'hich are meant to be enforced b$ the lection Commission of India under the

Representation of the People Act, 1%.1& /inall$, b$ not accounting for the mone$received from candidates, the concerned media compan$ or its representatives are

violating the provisions of the Companies Act, 1%.- as 'ell as the Income Ta+ Act,

1%-1, among other la's&

The phenomenon of (paid ne's) goes be$ond the corruption of individual ournalists and

media companies& It has become pervasive, structured and highl$ organied and in theprocess, is undermining democrac$ in India& Large sections of societ$, including politicalpersonalities, those 'oring in the media and others, have alread$ e+pressed their

unhappiness and concern about the pernicious influence of such malpractices&

uring his inaugural address at a seminar on (3eneral lections 200% and #edia

Reporting) on #a$ 14, 200%, that 'as organied b$ the Andhra Pradesh 5nion of

6oring 7ournalists at 8$derabad, Andhra Pradesh, three da$s before the results of thefifteenth general elections 'ere declared, 8on9ble Chairman of the Press Council of India

7ustice 3&:& Ra$ e+pressed grave concern about the covert emergence of the (paid ne's)

s$ndrome and this issue 'as discussed threadbare during the seminar&

!ubse;uentl$, representations against such malpractices 'ere received from several

veteran ournalists uldip :a$ar?& The$ alleged that sections of the media hadreceived illegal pa$ments for providing favourable coverage to candidates 'ho had stood

for the Lo !abha elections&

1


2/71

@n 7une -, 200%, the Press Council of India e+pressed serious concern over the

phenomenon of (paid ne's) that doubl$ eopardied the functioning of an independent

media in the countr$ and the 'oring of Indian democrac$ b$ influencing free and fairelections& The Council noted that the press provides a service that is ain to a public

utilit$ it e+ercises its right to inform because the public has a right to no'& The press

thus functions as a repositor$ of public trust and has the obligation to provide truthful andcorrect information to the best of its abilit$ 'hen such information is being presented as

ne's content& !uch ne's content is distinct from opinions that are conve$ed through

articles and editorials in 'hich 'riters e+press their vie's&

There is an urgent need to protect the right of the public to accurate information before

voters e+ercise their franchise in favour of a particular candidate in the electoral fra$& An

opinion that 'as e+pressed in the Council is that one reason for the proliferation of the(paid ne's) phenomenon could be that on account of the limits on election campaign

related e+penditure that have been imposed b$ the lection Commission of India,

candidates have chosen this alternative to publicie themselves, in the process posing a

danger to the conduct of free and fair elections& It 'as suggested that the po'ers that arevested in returning officers appointed b$ the lection Commission before the elections

tae place are ade;uate for such officers to issue notices to the press to e+plain the basisof particular (ne's) reports and ascertain 'hether financial transactions had actuall$

taen place bet'een candidates and representatives of media companies&

The Press Council of India felt that in pursuance of the mandate given to the Council b$

Parliament, it 'as incumbent upon this statutor$ authorit$ to e+amine the issue in all its

dimensions through detailed research and consultations& !uch an e+ercise 'as deemed

necessar$ to maintain the faith of the public in the media and also mae appropriaterecommendations to chec such malpractices from recurring on a 'ide scale before the

forthcoming rounds of elections at both the 5nion and state levels&

@n 7une 10, 200%, the elhi 5nion of 7ournalists communicated 'ith the Press Council

telegraphicall$ and e+pressed its concern at reports of mone$ po'er having pla$ed havoc

'ith the media coverage of the elections that had taen place& !hri !&>& Pande, President,elhi 5nion of 7ournalists described the (paid ne's) phenomenon as unethical, unfair

and an infringement of the right of ournalists to report freel$& 8e further informed the

Council that selected ournalists had been targetted b$ the managements of media

companies for not ac;uiescing 'ith such malpractices&

It ma$ not be out of place in this conte+t to state that the attention of the Press Council of

India had been dra'n as earl$ as April 2004 b$ one its members


3/71

The Press Council of India, through its Chairman and its members, participated in or

initiated a number of discussions and debates on this issue bet'een #a$ 200% and #arch

2010&

@n 7ul$ 4, 200%, e+ercising the po'ers conferred on the Council under !ections B


4/71

Introduction and Summary:

Corruption in the mass media in India and else'here is as old as the media itself& If thereis corruption in societ$, it 'ould be unrealistic to e+pect the media to be free of

corruption& India is the 'orld9s largest democrac$& A vibrant and diverse mass media is

an important pillar of democrac$ in the countr$& The independence of the mediafacilitates adherence to democratic norms& Article 1% of the Constitution of India confers

the right to freedom of speech and e+pression to all citiens of the countr$ and to the

media as 'ell&

In recent $ears, corruption in the Indian media has gone 'a$ be$ond the corruption of

individual ournalists and specific media organiations "" from (planting) information

and vie's in lieu of favours received in cash or ind, to more institutionalied andorganied forms of corruption 'herein ne'spapers and television channels receive funds

for publishing or broadcasting information in favour of particular individuals, corporate

entities, representatives of political parties and candidates contesting elections, that is

sought to be disguised as (ne's)&

:e's is meant to be obective, fair and neutral this is 'hat sets apart such informationand opinion from advertisements that are paid for b$ corporate entities, governments,

organiations or individuals& 6hat happens 'hen the distinction bet'een ne's and

advertisements start blurring, 'hen advertisements double up as ne's that have been paidfor, or 'hen (ne's) is published in favour of a particular politician b$ selling editorial

spacesD In such situations, the reader or the vie'er can hardl$ distinguish bet'een ne's

reports and advertisementsEadvertorials&

This report tracs the blurring boundaries bet'een ne's and advertisementsEadvertorials

and highlights the efforts made b$ individuals and representatives of organiations 'ho

have painstaingl$ chronicled the selling of editorial space for mone$ during elections&

@ver the last fe' $ears and since 200% in particular, the phenomenon of (paid ne's) has

ac;uired a ne' and even more pernicious dimension b$ entering the sphere of political(ne's) or (reporting) on candidates contesting elections& :umerous favourable or

complimentar$ (ne's) reports and feature articles on representatives of political parties,

including candidates 'ho have been contesting elections, have appeared in ne'spapers

across the countr$ in the run"up to the Lo !abha as 'ell as state legislative assembl$elections and similar inds of information have been aired on television channels 'ithout

disclosing the fact that monetar$ transactions have taen place bet'een the concerned

candidate or political part$ to 'hich he or she belongs and the o'ners or representativesof particular media organiations&

The deception or fraud that such (paid ne's) entails taes place at three distinct levels&The reader or the vie'er is deceived into believing that 'hat is essentiall$ an

advertisement is in fact, independentl$ produced ne's content& Then, candidates

contesting elections to not disclose the true e+penditure incurred on campaigning thereb$

violating the Conduct of lection Rules, 1%-1, 'hich have been framed b$, and are

F


5/71

meant to be enforced b$, the lection Commission of India under the Representation of

the People Act, 1%.1& The concerned ne'spapers and television channels t$picall$

receive funds for (paid ne's) in cash and do not disclose such earnings in their compan$balance sheets or official statements of accounts& Thus, b$ not accounting for the mone$

received from candidates, the concerned media compan$ or its representatives are

violating the provisions of the Companies Act, 1%.- as 'ell as the Income Ta+ Act,1%-1, among other la's&

The entire operation is clandestine& This malpractice has become 'idespread and no'cuts across ne'spapers and television channels, small and large, in different languages

and located in various parts of the countr$& 6hat is 'orse, these illegal operations have

become (organied) and involve advertising agencies and public relations firms, besides

ournalists, managers and o'ners of media companies& #areting e+ecutives use theservices of ournalists 'illingl$ or other'ise to gain access to political personalities&

!o"called (rate cards) or (pacages) are distributed that often include (rates) for

publication of (ne's) items that not merel$ praise particular candidates but also criticie

their political opponents& Candidates 'ho do not go along 'ith such (e+tortionist)practices on the part of media organiations are denied coverage&

!ections of the media in India have 'ill$"nill$ become participants and pla$ers in such

practices that contribute to the gro'ing use of mone$ po'er in politics 'hich undermines

democratic processes and norms 'hile h$pocriticall$ pretending to occup$ a high moralground& This has not merel$ undermined democrac$ in India but also tarnished the

countr$9s reputation as foreign ne'spapers have started 'riting about, and commenting

adversel$ on, such malpractices&

In addition, o'ners of media organiations have financial relationships, including share"

holdings, 'ith advertisers, resulting in onl$ favourable information about such advertisers

getting disseminated and unfavourable information against them getting blaced out&!uch trends have been discernible in sections of the Indian media for some $ears no'&

The regulator of the countr$9s capital marets, the !ecurities and +change *oard of

India

financial holdings and mandator$ enforcement of guidelines to ensure that the interests of

investors are ade;uatel$ safeguarded these suggestions have been endorsed b$ the Press

Council of India 'hich, in 1%%-, dre' up a set of guidelines that are particularl$applicable to financial ournalists&

Certain publications


6/71

volume of circumstantial evidence that points to'ards the gro'ing use of the media for

publishing (paid ne's) 'hich is a form of electoral malpractice& Identical articles 'ith

photographs and headlines have appeared in competing publications carr$ing b$lines ofdifferent authors around the same time& @n the same page of specific ne'spapers, articles

have been printed praising competing candidates claiming that both are liel$ to 'in the

same elections& :o'here is there an$ indication that the publication of such (ne's)reports has entailed financial transactions or has been sponsored b$ certain individuals or

political parties&

6hen confronted 'ith circumstantial evidence that substantiate allegations of (paid

ne's), the standard reaction of individuals and representatives of media organiations

accused of corrupt practices is to pretend that nothing unto'ard has happened since the

evidence is circumstantial in nature& The t$pical response of representatives of politicalparties as 'ell as media organiations 'ho have been named and against 'hom specific

allegations of corruption have been levelled, is to flatl$ den$ these allegations& In private,

ho'ever, these ver$ same people acno'ledge that the cancer of (paid ne's) has spread

deep into the countr$9s bod$ politic and needs to be removed&

!uch malpractices have destro$ed the credibilit$ of the media itself and are, therefore,detrimental to its o'n long"term interests& It needs to be noted in this conte+t that so long

as ournalists


7/71

The Andhra Pradesh 5nion of 6oring 7ournalists conducted a detailed sample surve$ to

highlight the manner in 'hich ne'spapers had published (paid ne's) items before the

Lo !abha elections and the state assembl$ elections that 'ere conducted simultaneousl$in April"#a$ 200%& Particular candidates 'ho stood for elections in Andhra Pradesh

named publications 'hose representatives had ased them for mone$ to publish

favourable ne's items about themselves& @nce again, representatives of these mediaorganiations flatl$ denied the allegations& @ne candidate odanda Ram

Rao of the Losatta Part$ in Andhra Pradesh? formall$ represented to the lection

Commission that he had paid a particular ne'spaper apil !ibal, spoesperson of the Indian :ational Congress !hri #anish Te'ari,

senior leader of the *harati$a 7anata Part$


8/71

found guilt$ of malpractices& *esides, the Council9s mandate does not e+tend be$ond the

print medium& A proposal to amend !ection 1.


9/71

Paid News

How corruption in the Indian media undermines democracy

The Background:

:e's reports that are printed in publications or broadcast on television channels aremeant to provide information that is not onl$ of interest to the public at large but

information that is supposed to be truthful or factuall$ correct and at the same time,

balanced, obective, fair and neutral& This is 'hat clearl$ sets apart such informationdescribed as ne's from either opinions e+pressed in editorial articles or, more

importantl$, advertisements or commercials that are paid for b$ corporate entities,

governments, organiations or individuals& 6hen the distinction bet'een ne's andadvertisements start blurring, 'hen advertisements double up as ne's that have been paid

for, or 'hen (ne's) is published or broadcast in favour of a particular politician or a

political part$ b$ selling editorial space, the reader or the vie'er is misled or duped intobelieving that an advertisement or sponsored feature is a (ne's) stor$ that is truthful, fair

and obective&

This report on (paid ne's) prepared b$ a !ub"Committee of t'o members of the PressCouncil of India tracs the blurring boundaries bet'een ne's and advertisements or

(advertorials) and highlights the efforts made b$ certain individuals and representatives

of organiations 'ho have painstaingl$ chronicled the selling of editorial space formone$, especiall$ during the April"#a$ 200% general elections in the countr$ and also

during the !eptember"@ctober 200% elections to the state assemblies of #aharashtra and

8ar$ana&

This report also documents the denials that have been issued b$ representatives of media

organiations and political personalities against 'hom specific allegations of corruptionand malpractice have been levelled and against 'hom a considerable volume ofcircumstantial evidence has been ac;uired, collated, documented and presented before the

Press Council of India& #oreover, this report summaries the depositions that 'ere made

b$ over .0 individuals and representatives of various organiations


10/71

use it to e+ert influence over decisions that should be governed b$ democratic principles&

#edia institutions face particular dilemmas because these organisations represent a e$

element of an effective democrac$ 'hile being, for the most part, commercial entitiesseeing success in the maret b$ ma+imising profits& The commercial activities and

maret interests of media institutions might distort the role the$ pla$ in the formation of

public opinion and conse;uentl$ in upholding principles and norms of democrac$&/avourable coverage for those in positions of po'er and authorit$ b$ the media, for

commercial reasons, might influence the decisions made b$ these people&

A 'idespread problem is the attempt to influence public debate through the purchase of

advertising space and the purchase of favourable editorial comment& Although some

o'ners and editors of media companies tr$ to erect a fire'all or a (Chinese 6all)

bet'een ournalists or content creatorsEproducers, on the one hand, and bu$ers and sellersof advertising space, on the other, in some ne'spapers, magaines and television

channels, this 'all has too man$ convenient access doors& #ost ournalists are

emplo$ees, increasingl$, of large companies or organisations 'hose primar$ aim is to

ma+imise profits and returns to shareholders& Insofar as ournalists9 duties are in partdefined b$ their role in corporate organisations, most of the ethical dilemmas the$ face

begin 'ith the inherent conflict bet'een the individual9s role as a ournalist providingindependent information to the public and his or her emplo$er9s ;uest for profit&

Corruption in the mass media in India and in other countries of the 'orld is as old as themedia itself& If there is corruption in societ$, it 'ould be unrealistic to e+pect the media

to be free of corruption& India is the 'orld9s largest democrac$& A vibrant and diverse

mass media is an important pillar of democrac$ in this countr$& The independence of the

media facilitates adherence to democratic norms& Article 1% of the Constitution of Indiaconfers the right to freedom of speech and e+pression to all citiens of the countr$ and to

the media as 'ell& In recent $ears, corruption in the Indian media has gone 'a$ be$ond

the corruption of individual ournalists and media organiations from (planting)information and vie's in lieu of favours received in cash or ind, to more

institutionalied and organied forms of corruption 'herein publishers of ne'spapers and

o'ners of television channels receive funds for publishing or broadcasting information infavour of particular individuals or corporate entities that is disguised as (ne's)&

6hat follo's is first, an outline, and then, detailed accounts of such corrupt practices in

sections of the media in India&

How editorial space was compromised by political paid news

As alread$ observed, ne's is meant to be obective, fair and neutral "" this is 'hat sets

apart such information and opinion from advertisements that are paid for& 6hen (ne's)

is published in favour of a particular politician or a political part$ b$ selling editorialspace, the phenomenon of (paid ne's) becomes even more pernicious& Innumerable

complimentar$ (ne's) reports and feature articles on representatives of political parties,

including candidates 'ho have been contesting elections, have appeared in ne'spapers

and broadcast on television channels across the countr$ in the run"up to the 200% Lo

10


11/71

!abha elections as 'ell as the state legislative assembl$ elections& :o disclosure 'as

made that before such (ne's) 'as printed or broadcast, that mone$ had been e+changed

bet'een the concerned candidate or political part$ to 'hich he or she belongs and theo'ners or representatives of media organiations&

!uch malpractices enabled candidates contesting elections to not disclose their truee+penditures on campaigning 'hich, if made public, 'ould have in certain cases violated

the Conduct of lection Rules, 1%-1, 'hich have been framed b$, and are meant to be

enforced b$, the lection Commission of India under the Representation of the PeopleAct, 1%.1& The concerned ne'spapers and television channels received mone$ for (paid

ne's) in cash and not in the form of che;ues and did not disclose such earnings in their

official compan$ balance sheets& This malpractice has become 'idespread and cuts

across ne'spapers and television channels, small and large, in different languages andlocated in various parts of the countr$, and this is evident from the man$ e+amples

provided subse;uentl$ in this report&

6hat is 'orse, these illegal operations have become (organied) and involve advertisingagencies and public relations firms, besides ournalists, managers and o'ners of media

companies& #areting e+ecutives use the services of ournalists 'illingl$ or other'ise to gain access to political personalities& !o"called (rate cards) or (pacages) are

distributed that often include (rates) for publication of (ne's) items that not merel$

praise particular candidates but also criticie their political opponents& Candidates 'ho donot go along 'ith such (e+tortionist) practices on the part of media organiations are

denied coverage& !ections of the media in India have consciousl$ chosen to become

partners, participants and pla$ers in malpractices that contribute to the gro'ing use of

mone$ po'er in politics that, in turn, undermine democratic processes and norms& At thesame time, representatives of media organiations against 'hom allegations are levelled

publicl$ condemn the practice of (paid ne's)& !ome such individuals behave in a

h$pocritical manner and pretend to occup$ a high moral ground&

3iven the illegal and clandestine nature of such malpractices, it is not eas$ to find

clinching evidence that pins responsibilit$ for such malpractices on particular personsand organiations& There is, ho'ever, a huge volume of circumstantial evidence that

points to'ards the gro'ing use of the media for publishing (paid ne's) 'hich is a form

of an electoral malpractice& Identical articles 'ith photographs and headlines have

appeared in competing publications carr$ing b$lines of different authors around the sametime& @n the same page of specific ne'spapers, articles have been printed praising

competing candidates claiming both are liel$ to 'in the elections&

That (paid ne's) is a phenomenon that is deleterious to the credibilit$ and independence

of the media itself needs to be emphasied& delman, an independent public relations

firm, in its 2010 Trust *arometer !urve$


12/71

ne'spapers are raned higher than other media in terms of credible ne's 'ith people

trusting ne'spapers more than an$ other medium 4B per cent of the Indians polled

trusted radio and television, 'hile F0 per cent trusted ne's in ne'spapers& @ver the pastt'o $ears, trust in television ne's dropped sharpl$ from -1 per cent to 4- per cent, that

of business magaines has gone do'n from 2 per cent to F per cent, and that of

ne'spapers has gone do'n from -1 per cent to F0 per cent& Trust in the media in India asa 'hole declined b$ per cent


13/71

the rules of the Indian media game began to change& *esides initiating cut"throat cover"

price competition, mareting 'as used creativel$ to mae *CCL one of the most

profitable media conglomerates in the countr$ it currentl$ earns more profit than therest of the publishing industries in the countr$ put together though as a corporate group,

the !TAR group has in recent $ears recorded a higher annual turnover in particular $ears&

The media phenomenon that has caused considerable outrage of late has been *CCL9s

2004 decision to start a (paid content) service called #edianet, 'hich, for a price, openl$

offers to send ournalists to cover product launches or personalit$"related events& 6hencompeting ne'spapers pointed out the blatant violation of ournalistic ethics implicit in

such a practice, *CCL9s bosses argued that such (advertorials) 'ere not appearing in

ne'spapers lie the TOIitself, but onl$ in the cit$"specific colour supplements that

highlight societ$ trivia rather than hard ne's& There 'as another, more blatantustification of this practice not ust b$ *CCL but other media companies that emulated

such a practice after *CCL started it& If public relations

sheen off the (private treaties) scheme for the *CCL management& 6hile the value of*CCL9s holdings in partner companies came do'n, the media compan$ had to meet its

commitments to provide advertising space at old (inflated) valuations 'hich also had to

be sho'n as assessable ta+able income for *CCL on 'hich corporation ta+ is levied&

ven as the private treaties scheme 'as apparentl$ aimed at undermining competition to

the TOI, a number of the ne'spaper9s competitors as 'ell as television channels started

similar schemes& The (private treaties) scheme pioneered in the Indian media b$ *CCLinvolves giving advertising space to private corporate entitiesEadvertisers in e+change for

e;uit$ investment the compan$ officiall$ denies that it also provides favourable

editorial coverage to its (private treat$) clients andEor blacs out adverse commentagainst its clients&

6hile *CCL representatives denied receiving mone$ for providing favourable editorial

space, the integrit$ of ne's 'as compromised& In advertisements published in the

14


14/71

E!onomi! Timesand the TOIcelebrating the success of the group9s private treaties, on

ecember F, 200%, the #umbai edition of the ne'spapers published a half"page colour

advertisement titled (8o' to perform the 3reat Indian Rope Tric) and cited the case ofPantaloon& 6hat 'as being referred 'as ho' Pantaloon9s strategic partnership 'ith the

TOIgroup had paid off& The advertisement read (J'ith the added advantage of being a

media house, Times Private Treaties, 'ent be$ond the usual role of an investor b$ notstraining the partner9s cash flo's& It 'as because of the unparalleled advertising muscle

of India9s leading media conglomerate& As Pantaloon furiousl$ e+panded, Times Private

Treaties

Press Council of India, 7ustice 3&:& Ra$ observing that man$ media companies 'ereentering into agreements called (private treaties) 'ith companies 'hose e;uit$ shares are

listed on stoc e+changes or companies that 'ere coming out 'ith a public offer of their

shares& The media companies 'ere picing up staes in such companies and in return,'ere proving coverage through advertisements, ne's reports and editorials& The !*I,

'hich has been set up under the !ecurities and +change *oard of India Act, 1%%2, and is

mandated to protect the interests of investors, felt that such promotional and brandbuilding strategies in e+change for shares, (ma$ give rise to conflict of interest and ma$,

therefore, result in dilution of the independence of


15/71

The !*I pointed out that (private treaties) ma$ (lead to commercialiation of ne's

reports since the same 'ould be based on the subscription and advertising agreement

entered into bet'een the media group and the compan$)& /urthermore, (biased andimbalanced reporting ma$ lead to inaccurate perceptions of the companies 'hich are the

beneficiaries of such private treaties)& 8ence, the !*I (felt that such brand building

strategies of media groups, 'ithout appropriate and ade;uate disclosures, ma$ not be inthe interest of investors and financial marets as the same 'ould impede in them taing a

fair and 'ell"informed decision& The !*I suggested the follo'ing

1& isclosures regarding the stae held b$ the media compan$ ma$ be made

mandator$ in the ne's reportEarticleEeditorial in ne'spapersEtelevision channels

relating to the compan$ in 'hich the media group holds such a stae&

2& isclosure on percentage of stae held b$ media groups in various companiesunder such (private treaties) on the 'ebsite of media groups ma$ be made

mandator$&

4& An$ such disclosures relating to such agreements such as an$ nominee of the

media group on the board of directors of the compan$, an$ management controlor other details 'hich ma$ be re;uired to be disclosed and 'hich ma$ be a

potential conflict of interest for the media group, ma$ also be made mandator$&

The !*I communication to the Press Council of India pointed out that a (free and

unbiased press is crucial for the development of the securities maret, particularl$ 'ithrespect to aiding small investors to tae a 'ell informed decision) and urged the Council

to address this issue at the earliest&

In this conte+t, the Council referred to the e+isting guidelines for financial ournalists thathad been framed in 1%%-, 'hich include the follo'ing

1& /inancial ournalists should not accept gifts, loans, trips, discounts, preferentialshares or other considerations 'hich compromise or are liel$ to compromise his

position&

2& It should be mentioned prominentl$ in a report about a compan$ that the reporthas been based on information provided b$ the compan$ or its financial sponsors&

4& 6hen trips are sponsored for visiting establishments of a compan$ and

hospitalit$ e+tended, the author of the report 'ho has availed of such facilities

must invariabl$ state these in his report&F& A reporter 'ho e+poses a scam or brings out a report for promotion of a good

proect should be encouraged and a'arded&

.& A ournalist 'ho has a financial interest in a compan$


16/71

B& 6henever there is an indictment of a particular advertising agenc$ or advertiser

b$ the Advertising !tandards Council of India, the ne'spaper in 'hich the

advertisement 'as published must publish ne's of the indictment prominentl$&

After deliberating on the issue, the Press Council of India endorsed the vie's e+pressed

b$ the !*I and stated that the relevant guidelines should be made applicable andmandator$ not onl$ to financial ournalists but to o'ners of media companies as 'ell&

This 'ould be in the interests of transparenc$ and fairness and 'ould reduce the

incidence of biased ne's about companies being published that is inimical to the interestsof investors&

TheMintcode of 'ournalistic conduct

TheMint, a dail$ ne'spaper published from theHindustan Timesstable in :e' elhi


17/71

8ere are a fe' e+cerpts from the code of conduct laid do'n b$Mintfor the professional

conduct of its emplo$ees

(ver$ udgment 'e mae as ournalists must be free of conflicts of interest free even

of the appearance of conflicts& Therefore, 'e must observe the follo'ing rules


18/71

mplo$ees are encouraged to be long"term investors inMintstoc&


19/71

Mintfurther la$s do'n guidelines on the financial dealings 'ith sources and subects of

storiesM restrictions on accepting gifts, meals and entertainment and travel advisories for

its ournalists&

(JIn situations 'here a compan$ 'ith 'homMinthas an editorial partnership offers

$ou favours, $ou must compl$ 'ith theMintCode of *usiness thics, 'hich states inpart (:o gift having more than nominal value and no loan umar Anaan of the Communist Part$ of India


20/71

'hen the$ demanded mone$ from candidates in e+change for publishing ne's about

them ust before elections&)

@n that occasion, he made a scathing attac on sections of the media that had

mas;ueraded advertisements as political ne's in the run"up to the general elections& 8e

sharpl$ criticied particular media organiations for entering into covert agreements 'ithcandidates of political parties and accepting illegal mone$ from them for publiciing their

activities andEor putting do'n their rivals& !uch practices undermined and compromised

the ver$ basis of the role that an independent media is e+pected to pla$ in a democrac$&8e listed various instances of impropriet$ follo'ed b$ ournalists and media

organiations in 8indi"speaing states before the 200% general elections& *arring a fe',

most ne'spapers in these states entered into deals 'ith candidates of various political

parties contesting in the general elections 'hereb$ the$ offered publicit$ pacages tospecific candidates andEor political parties to 'hich the$ belonged for mone$&

(Pacages) had been formulated b$ various media groups and the ne'spaper offering the

(pacage) 'ould publish no ne's 'hatsoever about the individual candidate andEor hisor her part$ if the candidateEpart$ did not accept the pacage& !hri 7oshi mentioned

accounts of various political leaders 'ho had complained to him regarding the'idespread practice of paid ne's in media houses in the states& 8e mentioned in

particular about the cases narrated to him b$ !hri Lali Tandon, #ember of Parliament

from Lucno', 5ttar Pradesh


21/71

about the individual candidate andEor his or her part$ if the candidateEpart$ did not accept

the pacage&

(I have been hearing about !hri A&>& Ro$, former #ember of Parliament from hanbad

in 7harhand, for a long time& In the last election that he contested, not even a single

ne'spaper cared to publish a line about him& !hri A&>& Ro$ represents the 'orers andlabourers of that area& 8is inabilit$


22/71

mone$ that 'as ased of him b$ ne'spaper o'ners& In a diar$, he has 'ritten do'n the

names of all those ne'spapers that demanded mone$ from him& 6hile addressing several

press conferences as 'ell as public rallies, he urged people not to believe 'hatne'spapers 'rote because o'ners of these publications 'ere corrupt&

(The most interesting episode concerns the 8ar$ana Chief #inister, !hri *hupinder!ingh 8ooda& 8e once chanced upon a ne'spaper that 'as carr$ing on its front page, a

detailed report of one of his meetings that had taen place three da$s earlier& Together

'ith the report that had been printed in a bo+, a big picture of the Chief #inister hadbeen published& A surprised !hri 8ooda then called the ne'spaper9s office to no' the

reason 'h$ this report had been published after a dela$ of three da$s& The o'ner of the

ne'spaper then said he 'ould mae necessar$ en;uiries and get bac to him& The o'ner

then called !hri 8ooda and told him that 'hat had been published 'as not a report, butan advertisement& An angr$ !hri 8ooda ased the ne'spaper o'ner as to 'h$ he had

published such an advertisement on the front page& The ne'spaper o'ner informed him

that the$ did provide such services for a fee& !hri 8ooda then told the o'ner to publish an

advertisement in the follo'ing da$9s edition that 'ould state NThis ne'spaper lies andtaes mone$ to print ne's9& Petrified over the Chief #inister9s terse and une+pected

reaction, the ne'spaper o'ner thereafter provided free publicit$ to 8ooda9s son&

(ver$ ne'spaper has made a calculation as to ho' much it 'ould lose financiall$ if it

ever invited the ire of a chief minister& !ome time ago I had been to Patna and happenedto meet a ne'spaper o'ner during m$ visit there& 8e ased me to persuade umar to help him b$ placing state government advertisements in

his ne'spaper that had incurred a loss of Rs 4 lah that month&

(A friend of mine 'ho had gone to campaign for a candidate in #aharashtra reported that

this particular candidate had spent Rs 1B crore during the election& /riends, I recount

these stories not merel$ for the sae of it, but because I had been a 'itness to some ofthese conversationsJI understand that these da$s particular candidates spend bet'een Rs

1 crore and Rs 2 crore on pa$ments to the media during elections& ach candidate hires

on an average, t'o emplo$ees to 'rite ne's stories about him 'hich are printed 'ithoutediting and sought to be passed off as independent editorial content&

(J I 'ould lie to conclude m$ speech 'ith a suggestion that a la' needs to be enacted,

'hereb$, if one publishes an article after being paid a certain sum of mone$, it needs tobe mentioned ver$ clearl$ along 'ith the article that the content has been paid for and

therefore, happens to be an advertisement& :e'spaper o'ners generall$ put forth an

argument that 'hat the$ bring out are products& *ut then the$ convenientl$ forget tomention the contents of their products& /or e+ample, ever$ medicine that one bu$s carries

information about its contents as 'ell as its manufacturing, pacaging and e+pir$ dates&

The da$ ne'spapers start giving out details of the sponsor of an editorial or a report, the$'ould realise it is impossible carr$ on 'ith the ind of fraud that is being perpetrated on

readers& !econdl$, before elections, the lection Commission should consider ever$

political ne's stor$ as an advertisement and should calculate the cost that must have been

incurred b$ the candidate to publish the advertisement& This amount should then be added

22


23/71

to the official e+penditure of the candidate and if the candidate is found to have e+ceeded

the e+penditure limits specified b$ the lection Commission, he should be dis;ualified

from contesting the elections& This 'ould help brea the ne+us that e+ists bet'eenpolitics and man$ sections of the media&)

*efore he made this speech, !hri 7oshi 'rote a series of articles in various ne'spapersand magaines highlighting man$ of the instances alread$ enumerated& /or instance, on

#a$ 10, 200%, he 'rote inJansattathat on April 1., the =aranasi edition ofHindustan

ne'spaper had published on its front page three articles praising a particular candidatenamed Tulsi !ingh Raput& These 'ere the first lead stor$, the second lead article and a

third article at the bottom of the page& In addition, three photographs of !hri Raput,

including one spread over three columns, 'ere printed on the same page& The follo'ing

da$9s edition of theHindustan carried a clarification that 'hat had been published theprevious da$ 'as an advertisement& The clarification added that the fact that the earlier

(ne's) reports 'ere advertisements should have been stated as such as this 'as the

ne'spaper9s stated editorial polic$&

*esides 'riting articles, !hri 7oshi repeatedl$ urged all right"thining individuals to

protest against the (paid ne's) phenomenon and carr$ out a campaign against suchmalpractices& !hri 7oshi has passed a'a$ but man$ people, including several ournalists,

have been inspired b$ the ideals he stood for and have taen the campaign for'ard& As

!hri 7oshi and others have pointed out, the phenomenon of (paid ne's) vitiates theelection process simpl$ because the mone$ spent is not audited and violates the

mandator$ guidelines relating to election e+penses laid do'n in the Representation of the

People Act, 1%.1, that is meant to be enforced b$ the lection Commission of India&

Smt !rinal Pande"s #iews on paid news

In a t'o"part article 'ritten for The Hindu


24/71

the respective areas& 6ith ero ne's value, none of these items merited such displa$, but

through the election period the front pages and op"ed pages of some dailies continued to

carr$ the mug"shots of particular candidates, even predicting a record 'in for him or her&

(The dailies ma$ or ma$ not have collected some Rs 200 crore 'ith this little duplicitous

e+ercise in psepholog$, but a ne' idea of 'hat has no' come to be called Npoliticaladvertising9 'as planted across the countr$, triggering a trend& And soon one heard that

the mareting and media mareting managers at several media houses 'ere gettingNcreatives9 prepared about 'hat 'as on offer, in time for the general elections& !everal

part$ functionaries 'ho manned part$ N'ar rooms9 during the period, 'hen ;uied,

confessed to having been sho'n Nimpressive9 Po'erPoint presentations b$ maorne'spapers, and in turn professing an interest in the offerings&

(The hard cop$ version of one such offering made on behalf of one 8indi dail$ published

from a rich 'estern Indian !tate blatantl$ delineates the phenomenon& The script claims

that some 4- Lo !abha seats in t'o maor cities in the !tate, including the !tate capital

and the surrounding areas, 'ere Nfeeded9 b$ the dail$& The proposal then la$s do'n aclear se;uential map of activities it can spearhead to promote the part$ or individual

candidates, ;uoting prices& At the local level it addresses the candidate, his or hersupporters and 'ell"'ishers, the district"level part$ office, the local #LA or #LC or

corporator, other local political leaders, the local advertising agenc$ and the guardian

#inister of the ruling part$& At the !tate level it is the !tate political part$ office, Cabinet#inister and !tate"level political leaders, businessmen and industrialists and a !tate"level

advertising agenc$& At the national level it addresses the central offices of political parties


25/71

realit$ is inviolable and a part of the nation9s realit$& 8indi ne'spapers inspired b$ the

capitulation of their big brothers in the media business ma$ dent the case for India9s

vernacular press, but cannot demolish it& 6hen it does its ob, a professionall$ runvernacular paper, funded ointl$ b$ advertising and paid"for"circulation, remains the best

bet as a scrutineer of democrac$ and the best guard for the inviolable realit$ of our public

spaces&)

$%amples of paid news from the Hindi press:

8ere is a selection of e+amples from the 8indi language press that could be construed as

e+amples of (paid ne's)

The Ranchi edition ofDaini' Jagranpublished a (ne's pacage) on page 4 of its April

1., 200% edition, in favour of a candidate belonging to the 7harhand #uti #orchaamesh'ar *aitha& This ne's item stated that !hri *aitha 'as (getting the

support of each and ever$ section of societ$) and that he 'ould 'in elections from the

Palamau Lo !abha constituenc$& There is no credit line to this ne's item and the fontused for this ne's item 'as different from the font used in other ne's items in the

publication& @n the same page, the ne'spaper had published another ne's item stating

that there 'ould be a triangular contest bet'een three candidates belonging to the 7##,

the 7harhand =ias #orcha and an independent candidate& This report has been creditedto a reporter of the ne'spaper&

@n April 14, 200%, the Ranchi edition ofDaini' Jagranpublished t'o (ne's) items on

page , both relating to the Chatra Lo !abha constituenc$& The first item 'as in favourof the Rashtri$a 7anata al umar adav, a candidate belonging to 7anata al


26/71

offered a Npacage9 to me 'asun+a% )esri& A representative ofDaini' Jagrancame to

me 20 da$s before the election and clearl$ told me NIf $ou 'ant coverage in this election,

$ou have to bu$ a Npacage9& These pacages 'ere 'orth lahs of rupees& After that, arepresentative ofDaini' ,has'arvisited me in m$ home& 8e too offered me a (pacage)&

(I turned do'n all these offers& I felt that ne'spapers 'ould cover large election rallies'here man$ people are present but the rallies that 'ere conducted on m$ behalf 'ere not

mentioned in these ne'spapers 'hereas the rallies of other candidates 'ere covered inconsiderable detail& 6hen I raised this issue 'ith representatives of the managements of

these ne'spapers, the$ told me that nothing could be done unless I paid for a Npacage9&

@n April 2B, 200%, I spoe about this Npaid ne's9 business publicl$ in the presence ofumari? #a$a'ati


27/71

Communist Part$ of India candidate !hri Atul >umar Anaan said (I have received

phone calls from representatives of t'o of the largest ne'spapers in north India,Daini'

JagranandHindustan& The$ ased me for Rs 1. lah each for coverage of m$ campaignin their publications& 6hen I reected these offers,Daini' Jagrandid not published

an$thing about m$ activities bet'een #arch 22 and April 1-, the ne'spaper did not even

publish an$ report about the rall$ that 'as addressed b$ the CPI 3eneral !ecretar$ !hriA&*& *ardhan& 6hen I contacted reporters and correspondents based in the #au bureau

ofDaini' JagranandHindustan, the$ said the$ have to follo' instructions issued to

them from their offices in =aranasi and elhi& 6hen I complained to representatives ofthese ne'spapers based in =aranasi and elhi, the$ slashed the rates of their Npacages9

and I 'as ased to pa$ Rs 12 lah&)

*7P candidate !hri Rami;bal !ingh said the follo'ing in an intervie' torathamra*a'tareporter !hri Rupesh Pande$ in Lucno' on /ebruar$ ., 2010 (uring the

election campaign in 200%, the bureau chief ofDaini' Jagrancame to me and ased me

to pa$ mone$ for coverage& 8e said that members of his bureau 'ere ust follo'inginstructions given to them b$ their head office& 8e demanded Rs 1. lah from me&

uring those da$s, his ne'spaper had published a fe' lines about me& *ut much more

space, in fact, t'o full pages, 'as devoted to reports about the activities of !mt !udhaRai, the Congress part$9s candidate from the constituenc$& I believe the publication of

Npaid ne's9 items resulted in bet'een .0,000 and -0,000 voters shifting their allegiance

in favour of the Congress candidate& :o other ne'spaper ased me for mone$&)

The *7P candidate from Lalgan in 5ttar Pradesh, !mt :eelam !onar said the follo'ing

in an intervie' toratham ra*a'ta


28/71

President !hri Ranath !ingh9s rall$, this ne's item claimed that (after this rall$ #eva

has got support from each and ever$ section of societ$)&

The Panipat edition ofDaini' Jagranpublished a ne's item on page % of its edition dated

@ctober B, 200%, that 'as in favour of the electoral prospects of the Congress& The ne's

item did not carr$ an$ b$line& The headline of the ne's item stated that the (good 'or)done b$ the Congress had marginalised the electoral prospects of the leader of the

@pposition in the state& ach and ever$ sentence of this ne's item is in favour of the

Congress part$& This ne's item criticises leaders of non"Congress parties and sa$s thatthe$ 'ould not be able to mae a mar in the elections because the Congress had done

ver$ good 'or for ever$ section of societ$& This ne's item added that candidates of the

8ar$ana 7anhit Congress


29/71

the phenomenon of (paid ne's) and cited the e+ample of the front page of the 8ar$ana

edition of theDaini' ,has'ardated @ctober 14, 200%, the da$ of polling for the state

assembl$ elections, ('hich carried onl$ the Congress part$9s advertisement)& 8e addedthat half of the second page of this edition of the ne'spaper again carried an

advertisement (along 'ith a fe' ne's items that 'ere obviousl$ paid)


30/71

political part$ incurs e+penditure to promote the interest of an$ particular candidate as

distinct from (general part$ propaganda) such e+penditure forms part of the candidate9s

e+penditure& The onl$ e+ception relates to the e+penses incurred b$ F0 leaders of arecognied national or state part$ and 20 leaders of a registered


31/71

e+pression (printer) shall be construed accordingl$M and


32/71

and the price charged for such printing ob in the proforma prescribed the

Commission& !uch information shall be furnished b$ the printer not collectivel$

but separatel$& In respect of each election pamphlet, poster etc&, printed b$ him'ithin three & #ehndiratta, Legal Adviser to the

lection Commission of India, he stated that the ne'spaper being referred to b$ the

Commission in this conte+t 'as theTimes of Indiaand that the letter had been issued b$the Commission to the ne'spaper before the 200F general elections&

According to the lection Commission of India, political campaigns being carried out b$certain organisations or individuals either espousing the cause of a particular political

part$ or a candidate or proecting a political part$ or a candidate in negative terms so as

to preudiciall$ affect their political prospects, through surrogate advertisements, 'asposing problems, in effectivel$ monitoring the election e+penditure of candidates&

Advertisements in a surrogate manner 'ere resorted to earlier, as the understanding of the

la' under !ection of the Representation of the People Act, 1%.1, at that time, 'as that

candidate 'as not accountable for an$ e+penditure incurred b$ an$ organisation, or his

42


33/71

friends and supporters& The lection Commission of India then issued the follo'ing

standing instructions in the matter

(The follo'ing points ma$ be noted in respect of the advertisements that appear in the

print media, especiall$ ne'spapers, for and against particular political parties and

candidates during election period


34/71

in the form of ne's items& @n the face of it, such advertisements give an impression of a

genuine ne's report covering the election campaign of a particular candidate& *ut 'hen

such reports repeatedl$ appear in that ne'spaper more or less on a regular basis, thematter does give rise to a doubt or suspicion 'hether the reports are Nhonest9 coverage of

the election campaign of the candidate as innocent ne's item&)

(The matter), sa$s the note given b$ the lection Commission to the Press Council,

(assumes bigger dimensions 'hen such Nne's items9 appear in more than one ne'spaper

as N'ord for 'ord9 reproduction or 'ith a fe' minor deviations& @bviousl$, in thepublication of such ne's items, there is more than 'hat meets the e$e& This trend has

implication for the voters9 right to correct information& The Commission has received

complaints, mostl$ informal, that some political parties and candidates have resorted to

bu$ing space in the print media b$ maing heft$ pa$ments to the ournalists or pressreporters in return for proecting their image b$ publishing planted stories at their

instance as Npaid ne's items9&)

The lection Commission note adds that (the more disturbing phenomenon recentl$emerging and 'hich is causing serious concern to the commission is the latest complaint

to the Commission that some of the ne'spapers have even offered pacages at heft$sums, offering three t$pes of services one, proecting the image of a political part$ or a

candidate in a positive mannerM t'o, giving negative publicit$ to the rival part$ or

candidate& The rates of such pacages var$, depending upon the standing and circulationof the ne'spaper in the area covered b$ the constituenc$& These rates further var$

depending upon the duration for 'hich such publicit$ campaign b$ the ne'spaper is to be

carried out, that is to sa$, 'hether for the 'hole campaign period or for the last one 'ee

of the campaign period or even for the shorter duration close to the da$ of poll& This'orrisome phenomenon is causing concern not onl$ to the lection Commission but also

to the entire enlightened section of the societ$ and even to some of the sections of the

print media and political formations& *ut sufficient initiative from political parties ormedia to counter this problem is $et to be seen on


35/71

candidate 'ho has stood for elections or his political part$ or his representative or

associate to a representative of a media compan$ that has published or broadcast the so"

called (ne's) in favour of the concerned candidate& !ince such pa$ments are invariabl$made in a clandestine or illegal manner, in the form of hard cash and not b$ che;ue, and

since official records


36/71

representative of the ne'spaper 'hether 'hat !hri Tandon had claimed 'as true and

'hether the ne'spaper had in fact demanded an$ mone$ from him to carr$ favourable

ne's on his election campaign& This is 'hat he said (6hen a politician of the stature of!hri Lali Tandon speas, it is natural for the media to tae note& 6e can onl$ assert that

'e did not offer our editorial space for mone$&) 6hen ased further as to 'hether !hri

Tandon 'as l$ing 'hen he said the ne'spaper9s representative had ased him for mone$to publish ne's about his campaign, theDaini' Jagranrepresentative repeated that no

one from his ne'spaper had ased !hri Tandon for mone$&

6hen >m Anuradha Raman of Outloo' magaine ased !hri Tandon if he had patched

up 'ith the o'ners of the ne'spaper, his repl$ made it evident that this 'as indeed 'hat

had happened& !hri Tandon ased a counter";uestion ()$on "ahi %aat doharana !hahte

hain4 Rehne di+ee$e3


37/71

(Throughout m$ ournalistic career, I have 'itnessed ho' mone$ po'er and corrupt

ournalism have al'a$s been maor factors influencing the outcome of an$ election this

is not a phenomenon that has appeared overnight& et, the last t'o general elections of200F and 200% 'ere e+ceptional even b$ past standards in the manner in 'hich huge

amounts of mone$ 'ere spent b$ candidates in their election campaigns& The no"holds"

barred e+penditure b$ candidates in the 200F elections 'as shocing b$ an$ standards,but the amounts of mone$ spent b$ candidates in the 200% general elections far e+ceeded

the amounts that 'ere spent b$ candidates in 200F& The general elections of 200% 'ere

the seventh covered b$ me and never before in m$ career had I 'itnessed such large sumsof mone$ being spent on election campaigns& Though I 'as a'are that candidates 'ere

spending large amounts, I did not have evidence that 'ould help me e+pose the fact that

candidates 'ere incurring e+penditures that 'ere far higher than 'hat is officiall$

permitted b$ the lection Commission of India& It 'as visible to the naed e$e& Proving it'ith documentar$ evidence 'as another matter&)

!hri !ainath observed that the general elections of 200% 'itnessed a paradigm shift in the

manner in 'hich candidates and political parties 'ored hand in glove 'ith the press andmedia houses in mas;uerading advertisements of candidates and parties as political

(ne's)& 8e stated

The sie of the maret for (paid ne's) is ver$ big& In Andhra Pradesh, unions of

ournalists have estimated the sie of the (paid ne's) maret to be some'herebet'een Rs 400 crore and Rs 1,000 crore&

In 5ttar Pradesh, politicians complained about ho' leading ne'spapers sold

various (pacages) or (rate cards) for publishing ne's in their favour andEorcompletel$ blacing out ne's about their opponents&

In Punab and 8ar$ana, complaints from politicians sho'ed ho' it 'as thene'spapers that set the agenda much before the elections 'ere announced& 6hile

the language papers claimed that it 'as the national dailies 'ith their local

editions and political supplements that 'ere forcing them to offer their editorialspace for a price, the national dailies denied resorting to such practices& ven

media houses in the national capital of :e' elhi 'ere not immune to the

malaise&

(Paid ne's) has become an organied and properl$ structured (industr$)& It is

corporate"controlled and functions 'ith the full patronage and participation of

some of the largest media groups in the countr$& The individual ournalist has no

importance in this (industr$) because 'hat is published as (ne's) has not beenindependentl$ gathered and reported b$ reporters and ournalists but 'ritten and

published as per the 'ishes of the political part$ or the candidate 'ho has paidmone$ to the concerned publisher or media organisation& Indeed, in some cases

the reporter 'as not even re;uired as the public relations


38/71

This (industr$) has become so organied that large PR firms, professional

designers and advertising agencies handled contracts 'orth man$ crore rupees not ust to position advertisements but to create (ne's)& Propaganda put out as

(ne's) 'as customised b$ these image"creation agencies to appear as (e+clusive)

ne's articles in the publications these appeared in& *ut the scale of the operation

'as so large that confusion and overlap 'ere inevitable and man$ givea'a$mistaes occurred


39/71

!hri !hail Ahmad, a la'$er and an independent candidate from !ion">oli'ada in

#umbai, said the ver$ ne'spapers that had earlier given him space as a social activist

(demanded mone$ to 'rite about me as a candidate)& (!ince I refused to pa$, nobod$'rote about me,) said !hri Ahmed, 'ho added that he 'as eager to depose before the

lection Commission of India and has filed a legal affidavitEundertaing in this regard

'herein naming ne'spapers lie J& that tried to e+tort mone$ from him& !hri Ahmed9sstatements 'ould earlier get space because he 'as ver$ useful to the media in, for

e+ample, in covering the proceedings of the 7ustice *&:& !ririshna Commission that

in;uired into the communal riots that had taen place in #umbai in 1%%2"%4& 8is servicesto the media 'ere in the nature of a public service from 'hich he derived no monetar$

gain& And his name 'as soon 'ell no'n in the press& 6hen it came to his contesting

elections, he 'as blaced out as he 'ould not pa$ mone$&)

2010, !hri Ahmed deposed before the Press Council of India reiterating the allegationsthat 'ere recounted b$ him to !hri !ainath&?

In the course of tracing do'n the trend of (paid ne's), !hri !ainath observed (!everal

editions of ne'spapers published from #aharashtra in bet'een @ctober 1 and 10, 200%bear testimon$ to the fact that there 'as huge scramble b$ candidates to get ne's space&

There are instances of m$steriousl$ fi+ed sie ne's items, each sa$ of a length of 12."1.0 'ords 'ith a double"column photo& The Nfi+ed sie9 ne's items hid more than the$

revealed& :e's items are seldom 'ritten in such a rigid format and sie 'hereas

advertisements are most often& In specific ne'spapers, multiple font t$pes and multipledrop case st$les 'ere noticed 'ithin the same page of a single ne'spaper& This happened

because ust about ever$thing the la$outs, fonts, printouts, photographs 'as provided

b$ candidates 'ho had paid for slots in the pages of the ne'spaper&)

!hri !ainath pointed out that in the election e+penditure statement submitted to the

lection Commission, #aharashtra Chief #inister !hri Asho Chavan, disclosed that he

had spent less than Rs lah on his election campaign& The e+penditure limit in terms ofelection campaign that is imposed on a candidate b$ the lection Commission of India is

Rs 10 lahs& @f the Rs lah, !hri Chavan stated that he had spent a mere Rs .,4% on

ne'spaper advertisements and another Rs -,000 on advertisements that 'ere on cabletelevision net'ors& These figures, according to !hri !ainath, are (clearl$ at odds 'ith

the unprecedented media coverage the Chief #inister got during the election campaign)&

(I have 'ith me B% full pages of ne's 'hich are devoted ust to !hri Asho Chavan&

#ost of these ne's items are printed in colour& A substantial number of these pages havebeen culled out from those editions of the big #arathi dail$ ne'spaper0o'mat, 'hich is

the fourth most 'idel$ circulated dail$ in the countr$ according to the :ational

Readership !urve$ of 200-,) said !hri !ainath&

!everal pertinent ;uestions arise from this huge media coverage that 'as accorded to !hri

Chavan, said !hri !ainath& 6hat 'ould have been the total e+penditure incurred b$ !hriChavan if all the (ne's) that had been carried about him and his achievements been

considered advertisements that 'ere paid forD 8o' does one ustif$ the presence of over

1.0 pages of (ne's) on one man 'ho had at that time held the post of Chief #inister of

#aharashtra for a period of onl$ 11 monthsD ven *arac @bama, the first African"

4%


40/71

American to 'in the 5! Presidential elections did not find an$ ne'spaper in the 5!

giving him five full pages of Nne's9 before his election& And his 'as the costliest election

campaign ever&

6hat !hri !ainath said 'as borne out b$ the statements of !hri ogi Adit$anath of the

*7P 'ho told Outloo'that his name did not figure at all in the reports appearing in theleading dailies of 5ttar Pradesh& (In m$ constituenc$ of 3orahpur from 'here I had

'on in the past, m$ candidature did not find a mention in the ne'spapers,) the *7P #P

remared, adding ho' ever$ ne'spaper in his constituenc$ 'as offering its editorialspace for a pacage&

!hri !ainath also observed ho' a spate of genuine advertisements of politicians hit the

pages of certain ne'spapers in #aharashtra on August 40, 200%& (This 'as 2F hoursprior to the date elections 'ere formall$ announced on 'hich da$, the model code of

conduct specified b$ the lection Commission came into effect& After the model code of

conduct came into effect, the 'ord Nadvertisement9 disappeared from all items on

political events and candidates& ven the fig leaf describing a paid ne's item as aNsponsored feature9 or a Nresponse feature9 disappeared and the items 'ere simpl$

published and 'ere sought to be passed off as Nne's9&

(These so"called Nne's9 reports that appeared subse;uent to the crucial dates of August

40 and !eptember 1B 'ere fascinating in more 'a$s than one& These reports that raisedtoasts to the candidates 'ho paid for them did not carr$ a single critical or negative

statement about the candidates in ;uestion& Across hundreds of pages, Nne's9 'as solel$

those inds of information that made readers a'are as to ho' 'onderful particular

candidates 'ere and about their achievements& There 'as not even a small mention of thereal issues that mattered to voters in these constituencies& The names of their rivals, 'ho

might have been people of lesser resources, simpl$ did not e+ist in these ne'spaper pages

e+cept, perhaps, as fall gu$s&)

It 'ould be a mistae to conclude that the business of paid ne's 'as confined to

language dailies, said !hri !ainath& 8e added (ven nglish dailies lie the /idar%halus


41/71

'ealth averages Rs -0 million


42/71

Shri &sho' 5ha*an These ne's items that are fre;uentl$ appearing in various

ne'spapers should first be interpreted& /irst, it needs to be firml$ established 'hether thene's item that has appeared is actuall$ a ne's item or an advertisement& If it happens to

be an advertisement, then it should be proved b$ documentar$ evidence lie receipts for

pa$ment against publishing of the item& @pposition parties have made allegations thatadvertisements 'ere passed off as ne's items printed in ne'spapers& Political parties

maing such allegations do not have evidence to prove that advertisements have been

published in the garb of ne's& It should first be ascertained 'hether a particular ne'sitem is indeed an advertisement&

5I In the absence of documentar$ evidence lie pa$ments having made through

che;ues, 'hich 'ould establish that there has actuall$ been a financial transactionbet'een a candidate or a political part$ and a ne'spaper or a television ne's channel, 'e

have 'ith us circumstantial evidence that !hri P& !ainath made available to us and about

'hich he has also 'ritten e+tensivel$ in his ne'spaper, The Hindu& 8e has made

available to the Press Council of India copies of three ne'spapers0o'mat,udhariandMaharashtra Times, 'hich are essentiall$ competing brands& In all three ne'spapers, the

same article on !hri Asho Chavan appeared, 'ord for 'ord& The article appeared inudharion @ctober , 'hile the other t'o ne'spapers carried it on @ctober 10& The onl$

difference in the three articles 'as that there 'ere three different b$lines& This means that

there is circumstantial evidence to indicate that these 'ere not ne's items butadvertisements&

&5 Let me correct $our statement since $ou have referred to a particular issue 'hich

concerns me directl$& !everal political parties have also launched complaints against meregarding this issue& According to me, the appropriate forum for challenging such

complaints is through an election petition in a court of la'& I 'ill put forth m$ vie's on

this issue in the court& Technicall$, once the election process is over, the appropriatemanner to address grievances is through the mechanism of an election petition in a court&

The Representation of the People Act and the Constitution of India provide that all such

matters that are raised after the elections shall be challenged in courts of la'& 8ence, thematter should be settled under a court9s urisdiction& !econdl$, during the process of

election a huge number of press releases are handed out and man$ press conferences also

tae place& Prior to the election, a number of advertisements are also issued b$ the

government highlighting the achievements made b$ the government& !o, 'e don9t no''hat is the source of information of these ne's items& In m$ part$, the Pradesh Congress

Committee also organies a number of press conferences 'here a lot of press releases are

issued to ne'spapers& It is a matter of fact that the contents of ne'spaper articles areculled from these press releases& I have never come across an$one 'ho has demanded

mone$ from me& oes the Press Council of India have an$ guidelines to help differentiate

bet'een ne's and advertisementsD

5I0o'mat'ith over 1F lah copies a da$ has14 editions& 6hat 'e 'itnessed 'as that

there 'as a flood of advertisements in the ne'spaper during elections& :o' $ou ma$

argue that since !hri Raendra 7a'aharlal arda, #P from Aurangabad ast, is the o'ner

F2


43/71

of this ne'spaper and is also a member of the Congress part$, he has 'ritten all these

articles in $our favour& 6hat 'e have found is that 0o'matpublished 1.- pages of

advertisements in the run"up to the election and all of them 'ere in $our favour& Thesearticles 'ere published in the months of August, !eptember and @ctober 200%& :o'

'ould $ou sa$ that this 'as done b$ !hri arda9s organisation voluntaril$ and no mone$

'as paid for itD

&5 I have repeatedl$ told $ou that 'hatever articles have appeared other than the

advertisements, there is no ;uestion of pa$ing an$ mone$ to an$one& @fficialadvertisements, 'hich 'ere issued b$ the Pradesh Congress Committee, have been

accounted for& At the same time, $ou should not forget that I 'as leading the part$ in the

state as the Chief #inister& !o it 'as not surprising that there 'ere articles 'ritten about

me& Reporters have piced up from 'hatever press notes and press releases that havebeen issued b$ the part$&

!ore *llegations and &ounter+*llegations

In a letter to the Press Council of India dated 7anuar$ 24, 2010, !hri =ia$ arda of the

0o'matgroup of ne'spapers 'rote (at the outset, it 'ould not be out of place to mentionthat the Press Council has N'oen up9 to this issue prett$ late in the da$& #edia

organisations have been officiall$ selling their ne's space for ;uite a long time and the

Press Council of India has been a mute spectator& As the number one #arathi ne'spapergroup in the countr$, 'e have a firm commitment to maintaining credibilit$ and the faith

of our readers& 6e adhere to the highest standards of professional e+cellence of our

volition, it is our chosen path and shall remain so&)

et another 8indi language ne'spaper,Hindustan, published b$ 8T #edia, had

prominentl$ carried advertisements of a politician, 'ithout identif$ing him as such, in its

=aranasi edition the te+t sie and the font 'ere designed to give it the loo of a ne'sitem& @n April 40, 200%, the da$ 'hen elections too place, the =aranasi edition of

Hindustancarried an item that deceptivel$ looed lie a ne's stor$ on top of its front

page 'ith a headline that suggested that there 'as a ('ave in favour of the Congress)&The follo'ing da$, the ne'spaper later apologised to its readers for the mistae and said

that it made a distinction bet'een ne's and advertisements& The representatives of

Hindustan told the Press Council of India that 'hen the$ realised their mistae the$ 'ere

;uic to point this out to readers&

The representatives of 8T #edia provided the Council a letter that had been published in

Outloo''eel$


44/71

than the unfortunate incident stated aboveJ&/or all our publications, 'e have clear

guidelines for Nsponsored9 features that get carried 'ith a clear notation or maring and in

a loo and st$le that is visibl$ different from our editorial content&)

8T #edia also denied that the former editor of Hindustan!mt #rinal Pande had

resigned o'ing to the incident in the paper9s =aranasi edition, among other things&(:othing could be farther from the truth as the said incident too place in April 200%,

'hile the editor resigned five months later in !eptember 200% due to entirel$ different

reasonsJ)

!peaing to the Press Council of India, a representative ofun+a% )esritoo denied of

ever having sold editorial space for mone$& 6hen the Council specificall$ ased him

'hat he had to sa$ about a senior manager9s comment to Outloo'that the samene'spaper had earned an$'here bet'een Rs 10 crore and Rs 12 crore for carr$ing (paid

ne's) items during the 200% Lo !abha elections, the representative said that it 'as not

his prerogative to comment on the internal matter of another famil$"held publication&

& Ramasubramanian, state secretar$ of the

*ahuan !ama Part$ in Tamil :adu said ho' he 'as assured of positive publicit$ b$ the

media during the election campaign provided he shelled out mone$ in the range of Rs F".lah for a period of 1."20 da$s under a special scheme designed b$ the ne'spaper

management& (/urther I 'as also enlightened b$ a publication9s management that if I

released advertisements soliciting votes in ne'spapers I 'as accountable to the lection

Commission 'hich 'as monitoring the election e+penses of candidates contesting in

FF


45/71

elections& 6hereas, 'hen the message appeared as an editorial piece, it 'ould help the

candidate conceal the e+penses incurred), said !hri Ramasubramanian&

Congress #ember of Parliament from the ast elhi Lo !abha constituenc$ in elhi,

!hri !andeep ishit narrated as to ho' he 'as ased b$ ne'spapers and television

channels to pa$ up if he 'anted his favourable editorial coverage& (I refused to pa$ up'hen reporters


46/71

!hri >& P& Reddaiah adav, former #ember of Parliament and =ice President, Praa

Ra$am Part$, Andhra Pradesh, 'rote to the Press Council of India on August 21,

200%, alleging that !ri Ramoi Rao, 'ho heads theEenadugroup of publications,had (hatched a plan 'ith other ne'spaper managements) to charge mone$ from

candidates for (election pacages) for each Parliamentar$ and assembl$

constituenc$& The (pacage) envisaged that each candidate should pa$ Rs 10 lah toeach ne'spaper for 1. da$s for favourable coverage about himself or herself& !hri

adav alleged that a number of publications such asEenadu. &ndhra J$othi. Sa'shi.

/arthaand&ndhra ,hoomiand television ne's channels lie T=%, T="2, T=".,8#T= :e's had received mone$ for publishing or broadcasting (paid ne's)&

Among other publications,Eenadu, ;uite predictabl$, denied accepting an$ mone$& !hri

Ramoi Rao, 'ho heads theEenadugroup of publications stated that the problem of(paid ne's) 'as part of a larger malaise afflicting the media in the countr$& 8e, ho'ever,

claimed thatEenadu maintains a strict distinction bet'een advertisements and ne's& In a

letter to the Press Council of India dated /ebruar$ 1, 2010, !hri Ramoi Rao 'rote that

the (the politician of the old da$s eno$ed popularit$ and people9s love,) adding (8isinvolvement in the freedom movement, his activism in various social reform movements

and his service to the public earned him great respect in the societ$& *ut the latter da$politician, the one from the rans of mone$ed and muscled sections needed positive

coverage to earn name and fame& 6ith the mone$ po'er at his command the ne' entrant

manipulated the local media person to gain popularit$ and public acceptance&

(3raduall$, favourable coverage in the press and the capacit$ to spend big mone$ in poll

campaign became the sole eligibilit$ on the basis of 'hich political parties chose their

candidates& #one$ thus acted as a ladder to gain political po'er& Suite naturall$, those'ho spent mone$ also began e+pecting returns& Thus 'as formed the vicious c$cle of

corruption& lected candidates ustified their corruption b$ citing the amount the$ spent

for getting elected& The so"called paid favourable coverage b$ the press is one of the off"shoots of this tendenc$,) !hri Rao stated&

@n the other hand, campaign managers of the Congress openl$ admitted that televisionchannels 'ere open to accepting mone$ from an$ political part$ if it 'anted to improve

its fortunes in the opinion polls and surve$s telecast over their channels& !till others, lie

!hri !udhaar Redd$ of the Communist Part$ of India from Andhra Pradesh said that his

part$ 'as assured of ne's space onl$ after it had committed itself to someadvertisements& (6e 'ere told that if 'e placed advertisements, ne's could be

published,) said !hri Redd$&

#ember of the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council, r >& :agesh'ar, told the Press

Council of India in 8$derabad on /ebruar$ 10, 2010, that as attempts 'ere made b$ the

lection Commission of India to control mone$ po'er in politics and as this effortintensified, so did the phenomenon of (paid ne's) 'hich became a (ne' and creative

channel) for illegall$ funding election campaigns& (After the candidate of a political

part$ pa$s mone$ to a particular ne'spaper, he starts treating ournalists 'oring for the

F-


47/71

ne'spaper as his servant or slave,) he said, adding that the phenomenon of (paid

publicit$) had degenerated further to become (paid mud"slinging)&

8e provided an e+ample based on his personal e+perience (@n /ebruar$ -, 200%, the da$

elections to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Council too place, Sa'shi;uoted the

#ehboobnagar district president of the *7P virtuall$ describing me as a traitor& 6hat 'as'orse, the ne'spaper defamed me b$ claiming that I 'as visuall$ challenged because I

had ignored the advice given b$ scientists and stared at a solar eclipse& This 'as a

complete coc"and"bull stor$& I 'rote to the ne'spaper and also represented to thelection Commission but nothing happened thereafter&)

Independent anal$ses of ne'spapers lie the Gu+arat Sama!har, done b$ a non"

government organiation, People9s #edia Initiative, indicates that in one particularedition the ne'spaper carried reports of all three candidates 'inning from t'o assembl$

constituencies in #aharashtra, #agathane and #alad& This naturall$ raises the ;uestion

as 'hether the reports 'ere paid for to be published& Gu+arat Sama!har, ho'ever,

vehementl$ denied the charges& (6e 'ill conduct an en;uir$ into this and chec 'hetherit is for a fact,) a representative of Gu+arat Sama!hartold Outloo'&

!hri 7atin esai of People9s #edia Initiative told the Press Council of India in #umbai

on 7anuar$ 2B, 2010 (!o arbitrar$ is the paid ne's phenomenon that sometimes t'o

conflicting ne's items appear on the same page because the paper 'ould have reached anunderstanding both 'ith a politician as 'ell as his rival& The paper Nreported9 that

candidates belonging to the #aharashtra :avnirman !ena


48/71

elections


49/71

The union stated that the pernicious practice of (paid ne's) not onl$ e+posed the greed

of managements of media companies in their endeavour to ma+imie their profits but also

posed a danger to the independence of the media, the process of elections and democraticinstitutions& (It is immoral, unethical and unprofessional to publish Npaid ne's9Jto

mislead the reader that


50/71

The $ditors /uild of India on paid news

The ditors 3uild of India in its annual general meeting on ecember 22, 200% in :e'elhi strongl$ condemned the practice of paid ne's, 'hich, in its opinion, 'hittled the

foundations of Indian ournalism& The 3uild called upon all editors in the countr$ to

desist from publishing an$ form of advertisements 'hich mas;uerade as ne's& The guildtoo cognisance of the fact that based on data compiled b$ media monitoring agenc$

Ad+


51/71

India and Chairman, Ra$a !abha, !hri #& 8amid Ansari said that the e+plosive gro'th

in the media in the countr$ had highlighted the fact that the /ourth state is the onl$ one

among the pillars of democrac$ that has an identifiable commercial and e+plicitl$ for"profit persona& 8e said that 'hile the primar$ professional dut$ of media organiations is

to their readership to eep them informed and appraised 'ith ne's, vie's and ideas, the

commercial logic brings in a ne' set of staeholders in the form of the shareholders ofthese companies&

These developments have brought into focus ne' considerations that guide professional

media decisions& Toda$, the demands of professional ournalists are carefull$ balanced

'ith the interests of o'ners and staeholders of media companies and their cross mediainterests& The interpla$ of these conflicting demands is evident and subect of public

debate& !hri Ansari also referred to The Hinduournalist !hri P& !ainath9s e+posure of

e+tensive malpractice of (paid ne's) and (coverage pacages) during the elections andpointed out that the Press Council of India9s guidelines to the media call for (not

accepting or publishing an$ advertisement at the cost of the public e+che;uer regarding

achievements of a part$ or government in po'er&) The Council had noted that paid ne'scould cause double eopard$ to Indian democrac$ through a damaging influence on press

functioning as 'ell as on the free and fair election process, he observed&

!peaing at a seminar organied b$ the Press Council of India on :ovember 1-, 200%, at

8$derabad to commemorate the :ational Press a$, the Chief #inister of AndhraPradesh !hri >& Rosaiah referred to the (paid ne's) phenomenon and said (a dangerous

tendenc$ that has been gaining ground is the resort to 'hat is described as paid coverage

especiall$ during elections)& 8e added (Advertisements paid for in cash b$ different

parties or candidates are being published or telecast, camouflaged as ne's and features&!ections of the media guilt$ of such practices are undermining democrac$ either

'ittingl$ or un'ittingl$& A candidate 'ith immense mone$ po'er can create an illusionthrough media that he is 'inning and influence voting behavior since people are given tobet on a 'inning horse&)

The Chief #inister further said (I 'ould not be true to m$self, the people of the countr$

and Press Council of India if I do not dra' the attention to the gro'ing ne+us bet'een

ournalists on one hand and politicians, businessmen and other celebrities on the other, Iam told there is a price for ever$ thing& And it is a 'in"'in situation for both sides&)

Turning to the Chairman of the Press Council of India, 7ustice 3&:& Ra$, 'ho 'aspresiding over the seminar, he said (I appeal to the Press Council of India to arrest such

media aberrations since an$ government intervention in media freedom 'ill be a remed$

'orse than the disease&)

At a seminar organised b$ the ditors9 3uild of India, the Indian 6omen9s Press Corps,

the Press Association and others on (paid ne's) in :e' elhi on #arch 14, 2010,

leaders of the Congress, the *7P and the CPI"# condemned the malpractice of (paidne's) and suggested that the Representation of the People Act be amended to declare

(paid ne's) as an (electoral malpractice)& Leader of @pposition in the Lo !abha !mt

.1


52/71

!ushma !'ara arat said that self"regulation b$ media 'ould not be enough to solve the problemand hence suggested that (paid ne's) be declared an electoral malpractice& 8e also said

that (the lection Commission cannot tae an$ action unless the Representation of the

People Act is amended&) 8e added that (if e+isting la's do not allo' this, then suitablechanges can be made) 'hile noting that the model code of conduct for elections does not

cover the problem& 8e said that a maor hurdle in checing the (paid ne's) s$ndrome

'as that there 'as no record of mone$ e+changed in the deal& Those 'ho paid mone$

should also be held accountable, he said&

!hri >arat9s suggestion of declaring (paid ne's) as an electoral malpractice 'as

supported b$ !mt !'ara and !hri Te'ari& !mt !'ara said that in her o'n constituenc$

of =idisha in #adh$a Pradesh, her o'n media officials had told her ho' the$ had beenoffered a (pacage of up to Rs one crore b$ a media organisation) to publish (ne's) in

her favour and print her campaign photographs& (I reected them all,) she said, addingthat this phenomenon had become institutionalised over the $ears&

!he said that she and her part$9s representatives 'ere read$ to name publications that hadapproached them 'ith offers of (paid ne's) if the lection Commission sought details in

this regard& (6e are read$ to name them& 6e are read$ to give evidence if lection

Commission formall$ ass us,) !mt !'ara said and gave an assurance that the

@pposition 'ould push for amending the Representation of the People Act in the Lo!abha&

!hri Te'ari said that there 'as a need to address the (contradiction bet'een freedom ofpress and the freedom of the o'ner of press)& !tressing self"regulation for the media, he

also called for giving statutor$ basis to the model code of conduct for elections and said

that he too 'ould provide details to the lection Commission of India if ased for&

lection Commissioner !hri !&& Suraishi, 'ho 'as also present at the seminar, said the

lection Commission onl$ had po'ers 'hen elections 'ere taing place 'hen it could

(roar lie a tiger)& It 'as up to legislators to use their po'er to halt the menace& 8epromised that the Commission 'ould augment its o'n machiner$, but pointed out that

onl$ circumstantial evidence had been put forth so far& There 'as no transactional

evidence that 'ould hold up to legal scrutin$, he said, adding that no political part$ hadmade a formal 'ritten complaint to the lection Commission as $et&

!hri !hahid !iddi;ui, former

pci report on paid news

Documents