PEMRA issues show cause notices to 14 channels

JournalismPakistan.com | Published 10 years ago

PEMRA has taken action against 14 television channels for airing hate speeches. The regulatory authority has mandated measures to prevent future incidents.
Summary

ISLAMABAD: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has issued show cause notices to 14 television channels Friday for broadcasting hate speeches of political leaders live.

In a statement, PEMRA has also directed the television channels to evolve a mechanism for delaying such broadcasts to avoid embarrassing situation in future.

The government expressed concerns over live telecast of hate speech of a political leader by most of the televisdion channels and urged the regulatory body to invoke section 27 of the PEMRA Amendment Act 2007, it said.

“Strict action would be taken against channels who fail to comply with the directives,” the statement said.

The development comes just a day after MQM chief Altaf Hussain criticized Pakistan Army in a televised address to his supporters in Karachi.

<p><strong>KEY POINTS:</strong></p> <ul> <li>PEMRA issued notices to 14 channels for broadcasting hate speeches.</li> <li>Channels must implement a delay mechanism for live broadcasts.</li> <li>The government is concerned about the impact of live hate speech.</li> <li>Section 27 of the PEMRA Amendment Act 2007 may be invoked.</li> <li>Strict actions will be taken against non-compliant channels.</li> </ul>