Parliament panel chaired by Tharoor to focus on media ethics, functioning of Doordarshan

Amid a raging row over TRP ratings, a Parliamentary panel chaired by Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has decided to turn its focus on ethical standards of media coverage.

At a recent meeting, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology also decided to review the functioning of the Prasar Bharati organisation, and the functioning and outreach of Doordarshan channels.

The Committee, which was reconstituted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla last month, has been tasked to maintain oversight over the functioning of the ministries of Information and Broadcasting, Electronics and Information Technology, and the Ministry of Communications.

Besides, the committee has also decided to review the functioning of the Central Board of Film Certification and examine the problems and challenges faced by the film industry.

The selection of topics is done with consensus by members across party lines who are represented on the 31-member committee.

Congress and some opposition parties have been targeting a section of the media of being soft on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and not focusing on pressing issues such as the state of the economy and rising unemployment.

The IT Committee’s recent questioning of Facebook and WhatsApp officials over reports of ignoring instances of hate speech by BJP leaders had kicked off a row, with BJP MPs demanding Tharoor’s ouster as chairman.

Among other topics, the Committee has also decided to examine the suspension of telecom and internet services and its impact, India’s preparedness for 5G, review of the cybersecurity scenario in India, citizens’ data security and privacy, review of the functioning of Unique Identification Authority of India.

The committee will also review the functioning of MTNL and BSNL and plans for enhancing their performance; functioning of TRAI; and schemes under the universal service obligation fund with special emphasis on the northeast and left-wing extremism affected areas.