The National Media Commission (NMC) has cited 44 tv (TV) stations for broadcasting unethical, indecent and offensive content material.
A public announcement by the NMC has directed house owners of the 44 stations to fulfill with the fee on Thursday, October 31, 2024.
“Owners of the media homes are invited to a dialogue with the National Media Commission on the regulatory implications of their broadcast content material,” the announcement acknowledged.
The Executive Secretary of the NMC, George Sarpong, in an interview with the Daily Graphic, disclosed that the tv stations had been cited as a result of they broadcasted content material on pornography, indecency, pretend lottery, occultism, cash doubling claims, and cash rituals.
He defined that the 44 stations had been discovered to have broadcasted the impugned content material throughout an everyday joint monitoring by the fee and the National Communications Authority (NCA).
“We have actively been doing media monitoring. The 44 stations had been discovered to have broadcasted indecent and offensive content material that negatively have an effect on society, and, subsequently, have regulatory implications,” he mentioned.
On what sanctions can be meted out to the 44 stations, Mr Sarpong mentioned the NMC would situation a remaining warning to them on the October 31 assembly.
“We are going to have a dialog with them. For now, we’re going to warn them for the ultimate time. We have given them earlier warnings, and that is going to be the ultimate warning,” he mentioned.
“Moving ahead, any station that isn’t able to abide by respectable content material can have itself in charge,” he added.
When requested if that meant a potential revocation of licences, Mr Sarpong mentioned “every part is on the desk”.
He defined that the motion in opposition to the 44 tv stations was fairly totally different from the regulatory motion the fee was endeavor in opposition to media homes that allowed their platforms for use for hateful speeches that led to divisions by inciting folks
“This class of offences is totally different from different offences corresponding to hateful speech. With these ones, the punishment is larger and we is not going to have any sort of dialogue with them, as we’re doing with these ones,” he added.
Content laws
In 2016, the Supreme Court declared as unconstitutional a legislation that required media house owners to hunt content material approval from the NMC earlier than publication.
The seven-member panel held that sure laws within the NMC (Content Standards) Regulations 2015 (L.I. 2224) amounted to censorship and contravened Article 162 Clause (4) of the 1992 Constitution.
The laws required media house owners to use for content material authorisation, submit programme information and content material for approval, and to go by a algorithm stipulated by the NMC or in default pay a tremendous or serve between two and 5 years in jail.
Not pleased with that side of L.I. 2224, the Ghana Independent Broadcasters Association (GIBA) dragged the NMC and the Attorney-General to the apex court docket, resulting in the court docket determination.
Mandate
However, Mr Sarpong defined that regardless of the court docket’s determination, the NMC nonetheless had the mandate to sanitise the media area, disagreeing that its present transfer amounted to censorship.
He mentioned the fee had taken the present motion in partnership with the NCA, which had the authorized backing to revoke the licences of broadcast media homes that violated the NCA Act.
“Now, what we’re doing is that the NCA has provisions of their Act, upon which they’ll revoke the licences of broadcasting stations. The present strategy is that we’re utilizing our personal inherent powers and the legal guidelines given to the NCA to deal with these points,” he mentioned.
Mr Sarpong mentioned the judgment by the Supreme Court made it troublesome for the nation to strengthen its regulatory framework to make sure that susceptible teams corresponding to kids had been shielded from sure offensive media content material.
