Media ban recommended for ‘anti-Pakistan’ rhetoric

Rebecca Hawkes ©RapidTVNews | 29-01-2012

Private television channels should be banned from airing anti-Pakistan views, according to a recommendation by the National Assembly's (NA) Standing Committee on Information and Broadcasting.

Phrases such as 'Pakistan will break' should not be aired on television - and nor should language of a similar nature - the committee said, according to APP.
The committee meeting was held at the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) headquarters on Thursday (24 January).
PEMRA chairman Dr Abdul Jabbar and Pakistan's Minister for Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan joined National Assembly members: Samina Mushtaq Pugganwala, Begum Nuzhat Sadiq, Rana Nazir Ahmed Khan, Malik Muhammad Shakeel Awan, Bushra Rehman, Mehren Anwar Raja, Chudhry Saeed Iqbal, and Mahboob Ullah Jan.
An effective monitoring system is now in place to keep tabs on content broadcast by private television channels, 85 of which are currently operating in Pakistan, said the Information Minister.
She added that the ministry is also considering the license applications of a further 85 channels, reported APP.
PEMRA has received 1076 complaints since setting up its complaints division, with around 90% of these pertaining to content aired by private channels, said the body's chairman.