Human rights are a set of principles concerned with equality and fairness.

They recognise our freedom to

make choices about our lives and to develop our potential as human beings. They are about living a life
free from fear, harassment or discrimination.

Human rights can broadly be defined as a number of basic rights that people from around the world have
agreed are essential. These include the right to life, the right to a fair trial, freedom from torture and other
cruel and inhuman treatment, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the rights to health, education
and an adequate standard of living.

Freedom of expression is a core human right which is guaranteed under international law and by virtually every
constitutional bill of rights in the world. It is key to human development, dignity, personal fulfilment and the search
for truth, and a fundamental pre-requisite for democracy and good governance. It facilitates free debate about and
between competing political parties, enables citizens to raise concerns with authorities and ensures that new
policies and legislation may be the subject of careful scrutiny. The quality of government is enhanced by free
speech because it helps to ensure that authorities are competent and honest and allows individuals to voice
concerns about and debate government action. Put differently, democratic values are under threat when
information and ideas are not permitted to flow freely.

Article 19 of the UDHR states: Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes
freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any
media and regardless of frontiers. Similar language is included in Article 19 of the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights (ICCPR), a formally legally binding treaty ratified by 168 States as of April 2014: (1) Everyone
shall have the right to freedom of opinion. (2) Everyone shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right
shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either
orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art or through any other media of his choice.

Freedom of speech as a human right

 This implies that all citizens have the right to express their views and opinions freely.
 This includes not only words of mouth, but also a speech by way of writings, pictures, movies,
banners, etc.
 The right to speech also includes the right not to speak.
 The Supreme Court of India has held that participation in sports is an expression of one’s self and
hence, is a form of freedom of speech.
 In 2004, the SC held that hoisting the national flag is also a form of this freedom.
 Freedom of the press is an inferred freedom under this Article.
 This right also includes the right to access information because this right is meaningless when
others are prevented from knowing/listening. It is according to this interpretation that the Right to
Information (RTI) is a fundamental right.
 The SC has also ruled that freedom of speech is an inalienable right adjunct to the right to life
(Article 21). These two rights are not separate but related.
 Restrictions on the freedom of speech of any citizen may be placed as much by an action of the
state as by its inaction. This means that the failure of the State to guarantee this freedom to all
classes of citizens will be a violation of their fundamental rights.
 The right to freedom of speech and expression also includes the right to communicate, print and
advertise information.
 This right also includes commercial as well as artistic speech and expression.

Importance of Freedom of Speech and Expression

A basic element of a functional democracy is to allow all citizens to participate in the political and social
processes of the country. There is ample freedom of speech, thought and expression in all forms (verbal,
written, broadcast, etc.) in a healthy democracy.
Freedom of speech is guaranteed not only by the Indian Constitution but also by international statutes
such as the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (declared on 10th December 1948), the International
Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental
Freedoms, etc.

Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, enshrined in Article 19 of the

Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But around the world, there are governments
and those wielding power who find many ways to obstruct it.

They impose high taxes on newsprint, making newspapers so expensive that people
can't afford to buy them. Independent radio and TV stations are forced off the air if they
criticize Government policy. The censors are also active in cyberspace, restricting the
use of the Internet and new media

The Need to Protect Freedom of Speech

There are four justifications for freedom of speech. They are:

1. For the discovery of truth by open discussion.

2. It is an aspect of self-fulfilment and development.
3. To express beliefs and political attitudes.
4. To actively participate in a democracy.

Justification of free speech

This Article sets out what I believe are the relevant justifications for free speech, the term "free speech"
being meant to cover both freedom of speech and freedom of the press. These are the justifications one
might use to assess whether communications fall within a political or judicial principle of free speech and
how great the protection of the communications that are covered should be. Such assessments are
undertaken in a longer study that is mainly about the ways in which different uses of language affect the
application of principles of freedom of speech to the criminalization of behavior. That study concentrates
on the communicative acts that lie on the border of free speech, especially solicitations to crime and
threats, in an attempt to examine the proper boundaries of free speech.
My broader purpose illuminates the ambitions and limits of this Article. What follows is an attempt to set
out the various justifications for free speech in a systematic way. This attempt should provide some
antidote for confusion and for oversimplification, the main disease of legal and philosophical scholarship.
The Article reveals the subtle plurality of values that does govern the practice of freedom of speech; and
one can surmise that a similarly close investigation would reveal a plurality of values behind almost any
important social practice. This Article also reflects my own sense that, whatever may be true at some
ultimate level, human beings dealing with practical problems not only do but should rely on a plurality of
values. Rather than undertaking an exhaustive analysis of any individual justification, this Article attempts
to set forth the relevant justifications for free speech as clearly, systematically and accurately as possible.
The main virtue of the following pages is that they provide a coherent and comprehensive overview of
justifications for free speech, an overview that will enable the reader to see how one justification relates to
others, to understand what may be left out if one or two justifications are portrayed as dominant, and to
assess with a suitably critical eye claims about the content of particular justifications and why they should
be given a central place or rejected.
Most of the Article is devoted to particular justifications for free speech, but first some preliminary matters
are covered. Part I indicates why one can speak of a principle, or principles, of free speech only if there
are bases for protecting speech that do not apply similarly to some substantially broader category of acts.
Once Part I clarifies the idea of a principle of free speech, Part II examines the nature and classification of
justifications. It maintains that efforts to arrive at any single unifying justification risk either simplifying or
obscuring the complex values undergirding freedom of expression. This Part also suggests how the
distinction between consequentialist and nonconsequentialist justifications usefully differentiates between
reasons depending directly on empirical grounds and those resting on other normative claims. Parts III
and IV then provide an account of multiple justifications divided along consequentialist and
nonconsequentialist lines.
Media freedom, freedom of various kinds of mass media and sources of communication to operate in
political and civil society. The term media freedom extends the traditional idea of the freedom of the press
to electronic media, such as radio, television, and the Internet. The term acknowledges that the media in
modern societies consist of more than print sources. Media freedom is generally held to be necessary for
democratic societies. Individuals generally cannot get sufficient information on their own to make
informed decisions on public matters, so they rely on media to provide information. In addition, the
media are an outlet for public discussion and opinion and generally fulfill the functions of seeking truth,
educating the public, and serving as a watchdog over government.

Free media help ensure that the democratic principle of publicity—sometimes referred to as transparency
—is satisfied. Publicity refers to making information about the operations of government public and
provides the opportunity for public debate and scrutiny of matters of public concern. Many think that this
function of the media prevents and corrects abuses of power. Conversely, the media provide information
about citizen opinion and concerns to political leaders and others in power. Media freedom, and its
protection of the principles of publicity, can be curtailed both by excessive government control and
regulation and by market forces and practices. Other influences that can reduce the effectiveness of media
are increases in elite or private modes of communication that evade public scrutiny, the reduced literacy
of consumers of media, and lack of access to media for use by the public.

Media freedom implies media responsibility and accountability. If free media are going to fulfill their vital
functions, then the public needs assurance that the media are seeking the truth and acting to guard the
public interest. Government regulations on media seek to ensure that media act within the parameters of
public interest. However, many argue that all or many government regulations interfere with media
freedom and violate the public’s right to choose and own media sources. On the other hand, government
regulations may be necessary to control corporate media outlets that dominate the public’s access to
information.

New forms of media, particularly the Internet, create more issues in media freedom. Many think that
these new, unregulated outlets for public discussion are democratizing public access to media and
increasing participation in public debate. Others worry that unregulated channels of communication not
subject to editorial review will increase false information and potentially skew public opinion. Further,
many new forms of media are international in character and beyond the control of any one political
society.

Right to freedom of speech and expression not confined to national boundaries –

The question whether an Indian citizen’s right to freedom of speech and expression extends beyond the
geographical limits of India was considered by the Supreme Court in the case of Maneka Gandhi v. Union of
India.
In this landmark judgment, the Supreme Court held that the freedom of speech and expression has no
geographical
limitation and it carries with it the right of a citizen to gather information and to exchange thought with others not
only in
India but abroad also. The court said:-
Freedom of speech and expression carriers with it the right to gather information as also to speak and
express oneself at home and abroad and to exchange thoughts and ideas with others not only in India but
also outside.
The Court observed that the authors of the Constitution had deliberately chosen not to use words confining the
right by refraining from the use of words ‘in the territory of India’ at the end of Article 19(1) (a).
It was argued on behalf of the government that the right under Article 19 (1) (a) could not be extended beyond
Indian territory since the State could not protect the enforcement of the fundamental right to free speech in a
foreign
country. The Court rejected that argument and recognized that on account of the vast improvement in technology
and
communications, a person, while in India, could transmit information to a foreign country and in the process
exercise his or
her right to free expression abroad, which if restricted by the State, would amount to an infringement of Article
19(1) (a).

2. The Boundaries of Free Speech and a Free Press

BY RICHARD WIKE AND KATIE SIMMONS

In general, most publics around the world say that free speech and a free press are very important to have
in their country. However, support for both is contingent on the topic of the speech. While majorities
think people should be able to critique the government in public, there is less support for being able to say
things that are offensive either to minorities or religious groups. And very few approve of public speech
that is sexually explicit or that calls for violent protests. Widespread majorities believe the press should be
able to publish information about protests in the country or economic issues that might destabilize the
economy. However, with the exception of Latin American publics, relatively few support allowing the
press to freely publish on sensitive issues related to national security.

Freedom of information is an extension of freedom of speech where the medium of expression is

the Internet. Freedom of information may also refer to the right to privacy in the context of the Internet
and information technology. As with the right to freedom of expression, the right to privacy is a
recognised human right and freedom of information acts as an extension to this right.[57] Freedom of
information may also concern censorship in an information technology context, i.e., the ability to
access Web content, without censorship or restrictions.[58]

Freedom of information is also explicitly protected by acts such as the Freedom of Information and
Protection of Privacy Act of Ontario, in Canada. The Access to Information Act gives Canadian citizens,
permanent residents, and any person or corporation present in Canada a right to access records of
government institutions that are subject to the Act.

What is meant by broadcast media?

The term 'broadcast media' covers a wide spectrum of different communication methods such as television, radio,
newspapers, magazines and any other materials supplied by the media and press.

What types of information are available in the broadcasting media?

The broadcasting media provides valuable information, for example speeches, documentaries, interviews,
advertisements, daily news, financial markets and much more. The latest (newest/most up-to-date) information can
be found here.

origin

broadcasting, Transmission of sound or images by radio or television. After Guglielmo Marconi’s

discovery of wireless broadcasting in 1901, radio broadcasting was undertaken by amateurs. The first U.S.
commercial radio station, KDKA of Pittsburgh, began operation in 1920. The number of stations
increased rapidly, as did the formation of national radio networks. To avoid radio monopolies, Congress
passed the Radio Act of 1927, which created the Federal Communications Commission to oversee
broadcast operations. In the 1930s and ’40s, the “golden age of radio,” innovations in broadcast
techniques and programming made radio the most popular entertainment medium. Television
broadcasting began in Germany and Britain in the 1930s. After World War II the U.S. took the lead, and
television stations soon overshadowed radio networks. Colour television broadcasts began in 1954 and
became widespread in the 1960s. By the 1980s, satellite transmission of live television further expanded
the field of broadcasting. See also ABC; BBC; CBS; CNN; NBC; PBS

History of Broadcast in Media

The year 1895 is largely regarded as the seminal year of broadcast innovation. It
was this year when Italian inventor, Guglielmo Marconi, first built and used a
wireless telegraph device that could transmit information via radio waves.
Previously, electronic telegraph signals were only possible via long cables. Marconi
is credited with creating the first radio broadcast, though few owned devices that
could receive radio signals at the time. The first broadcast signals ever transmitted
were via Morse code, a simple combination of tones and pauses to denote letters of
the alphabet. The shipping trade was quick to adopt this technology for nautical
communication. Perhaps the most infamous example of an early broadcast was the
distress signal of the RMS Titanic, which sank in 1912.
system Of Broadcasting Regulations In India

a. All executive and legislative power over posts, telegraph, telephones, wireless, broadcasting and
other forms of communication vests with the union.

b. Indian telegraphic Act Principal pillar for regulation of communications and broadcast.

c. This Act is not confined to the concept of telegraph but all other modern communication devices.

d. Sec 4 of the Act states that the Central government has exclusive privilege of establishing,
maintaining and working telegraphs within India.

Major Laws And Regulations

 Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995 as amended.

 Cable Television Networks Rule 1994 as amended.

 Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Act. 1997 as amended.

 Prasar Bharti (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act 1990 as amended.

 Sports Broadcasting Signal (mandatory Sharing with Prasar Bharti) Act. 2007.

 Policy Guidelines for up linking from India as amended in 2011.

 Policy Guidelines for downlinking of Television Channels as amended in 2011

 Guidelines for obtaining DTH license.

 The Telegraph Act. 1885.

  2nd Amendment to Cable Television Networks(Regulation) Act 1995, mandating total
digitalization in all Cable Networks by Dec 2014.

Key Features Of Broadcasting Regulations In India

 Provide signals on non-discriminate basis to the distributors.

 Share important sporting events of national importance with the public broadcaster.

 Mandatory carriage of channels of public broadcaster and those operated by and on behalf of the
parliament.

 TV channels to be carried over must have up-linking and downlinking guidelines.

 Must carry provisions for national and all regional languages.

 Detailed quality of service.

 Must have all provisions for regulation, appointment of members to the governing body and
grievance redressal mechanisms.

Difference Between India And Uk With Respect To Broadcasting Regulations:

In India, the regulation of broadcasting is entrusted to the Union. Whereas in UK, it is entrusted to both
private and public entities. Self-regulatory process is not working in India.
In UK, the print media is totally self-regulating in nature. Both print and broadcast media is independent
from government control in the UK. A code of practice for broadcasting services is established to ensure
integrity and interest of the public.

There is no code of practice as that of UK India. Unlike India, there is balance between privacy and public
interest. The media may show anonymous public but only when their act indicates that they are public in
nature. The Indian regulatory committee is controlled only by the government officials appointed to the
board. Whereas in UK, both media and non-media persons are involved in the regulatory mechanism.
The media in UK is totally impartial and does not use any power to influence public opinion.

In India, press and media is predominantly influenced by political authorities. The media in UK is not
favour to one point. One cannot make own issues and statements. During elections, complicated rules
are made in order to regulate the spread of false information. The rules and regulations of the media and
the code of practice in UK is flexible and can be changed according to the needs of the service providers.
This practice cannot be followed ion India because any rule to be amended must follow a set of rules and
procedures. The regulatory bodies are highly professional, fair, transparent and Impartial in UK.

Broadcasting in India versus the UK

Regulation in India is entrusted with the Union whereas, in the United Kingdom, it is
entrusted with private and public entities. The UK has a self-regulated print media and both
the print and broadcast media are independent of government control. In India, the press
and media are predominantly influenced by political authorities.

Meaning of Censorship
The term'censorship'comes from the Latin'censere'meaningto give one's opinion, or to assess. In ancient
Rome the censors, two Roman magistrates, conducted the census and regulated the manners and
morals of the citizens.
Censorship's may be applied to both written and oral communications. Its span encompasses books,
magazines, newspapers, radio, TV, movies, dramas, paintings, plays, speeches, dance, music, art,
literature, photographs, mails, emails, websites etc. deemed to be offensive, indecent, obscene and
sexually explicit.

Censorship of Films

Films are considered as a great medium of communication with the people. With the development and
progress of the society and also with the progress in the field of science and technology the films have
undergone a sea change and by adopting all the available technologies have been able to reach the
masses and also significantly contributed to the social and cultural development of the country. In this
way the films are equated with the Press as Press is also considered as a great medium of
communication. Both the films and the Press enjoy the same status and right so far as constitutional
freedom relating to expression of ideas and spreading of ideas and messages are concerned. As is
known Article 19(1) (a) of the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech and expression which is
extended to the Press also. Therefore, both these mediums are regulated under this provision of the
Constitution. Simultaneously as these freedoms are not absolute and subject to constitutional restrictions,
both these mediums are also to adhere to this.[1]

As mentioned above, we have the Cinematograph Act, 1952 to see the films fulfill the norms prescribed
by the law. The Act provides for the establishment of a'Central Board of Film Certification', the regulatory
body for films in India to issue the certificate to the makers of the film for public exhibition. As per the
provision of the law, the Board after examining the film or having it examined could:
(a) Sanction the film for unrestricted public exhibition;
(b) Sanction the film for public exhibition restricted to adults;
(c) Direct such excisions and modifications in the film before sanctioning the film to any unrestricted public
exhibition or for public exhibition restricted to adults; and
(d) Refuse to sanction the film for public exhibition.

what do we mean by Censorship?

 About:
o Censorship is proclaimed to be a tool that is placed to keep a fair check on what comes
into the public domain and how this information or data fulfills certain commonly acceptable
standards to maintain harmony, peace and social order.
o The term 'censorship' in Indian law has often led to a fire and ice type debate amongst
laymen, politicians, thinkers, organizations and various other groups.
o However, censorship has connotations, grounds of operation, and room for
interpretation that goes much beyond this commonly assumed understanding and is subjective
in its application and observation. This makes censorship legislation prone to misuse.
o Particularly in India, censorship laws take everything that comes in public domain –
advertisements, theatre, films, series, music, speeches, reports, debates, magazines,
newspapers, plays, any form of art, dance, literature, written, documentary or oral works – in
their sweep.
o Thus, there have been several instances when speeches and other forms of public
expression have been removed from the public domain on account of being outrageous,
indecent, against morality, public order or for hurting religious sentiments – parameters which
have no specific definitions or proper contours.
o Such instances seem to be growing in their ambition, ambit, and number and are seen as a
major threat to freedom of speech and expression.
 Working in India:
o Censorship process is done by the concerned authority or a designated body.
o Censorship is exercised in India directly and indirectly via different legislations and authorities,
in different domains like Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure, Central Board of
Film Certification, Press Council of India, Cinematograph Act, 1952, Cable Television Act etc.
How does Censorship Work in India?

 Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C):

o Section 95 of the Cr.P.C allows forfeiture of certain content/ publications.
 It is punishable by the State Government via an official notification under this section if
any newspaper, book, or document, wherever printed, contains any matter that the State
Government considers harmful to the state.
o This would allow a magistrate to issue warrants to search for 'objectionable' publications.
 CBFC:
o The Central Bureau of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory body operational under the
Cinematography Act, 1952.
o It regulates the content of films that are brought into the public domain.
o The CBFC follows a system of prior certification of films and the broadcasters are bound by
the guidelines under the 'Programme Code and Advertisement Code' to follow the
certification provided.
o It provides for categorization in the following four categories i.e.
 'U'- connotes the category of unrestricted exhibition.
 'UA'- connotes category of unrestricted exhibition except children below the age
 group of 12 years of age.
 'A'- connotes the category of exhibition permitted and restricted to adults.
 'S'- connotes the category of films restricted to specified class of people only.
 Press Council of India:
o It is a statutory and quasi-judicial body which was established under the Press Council Act,
1978.
o It acts as the self-regulatory body for the press and regulates what comes to the media
domain.
o This body emphasizes the need for media persons and journalists to self-regulate, and
acts as a watchdog for media content at large to assess if it goes against press ethics and the
public interest.
 The Cable Television Networks Act:
o This act also filters the kind of content that can be broadcasted.
o For keeping a track over cable operators, the act mandates a compulsory registration for cable
operators.
o It also lays down provisions to regulate content to be broadcasted by the cable operator,
following this it mandates the certification of film by CBFC under the category-'U' (i.e.
Unrestricted-public-exhibition) before it is transmitted or broadcasted via cable television
irrespective of the film being produced in India or abroad.
o This Act confers ample power to the government to ban cable operators, channels or
certain programs that violate the given program code or guidelines as prescribed by the rules
made under the act- 'Cable Television Networks Rules'.
 Social Media Platforms and the New IT Rules, 2021:
o Given the significant rate of growth of social media, its censorship has been a growing point
of concern in India as till recent times, it was not under the direct supervision of any
government authority or direct and specific regulation thus far.
o At present, the Information and Technology Act, 2000 regulates social media usage, and
Sections 67A, 67B, 67C and 69A, in particular, include the specific regulatory clauses.
 IT (Intermediary Guidelines & Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021:
o These were preceded by the amendments to the 'Allocation of Business Rules' under the
IT Act, 2000 to bring films, audio-visual programmes, news, current affairs content, and digital
and online media including OTT (Over The Top) platforms like Amazon, Netflix, and Hotstar
under the purview of Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B), Government of India.
o The IT (Intermediary Guidelines & Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 put in place after this
amendment include new compliance and redressal mechanisms for social Media, OTT, digital
news and even messaging apps (like WhatsApp and Viber).
What are the Pros and Cons of Censorship?

 Pros:
o Censorship Prevents Disharmony:
 Censorship prevents disharmony in society by prevention of disclosure of objectionable
content that can lead to communal discord
o Preserves the Security of the State:
 The censorship of the internet can help to protect social stability and national safety.
 Since internet censorship can help to curb the large number of illegal activities and
internet crimes, it is good for the stability of society.
 Some illegal organizations or people may release black information which will
disturb the national economy and polity.
 The terrorists and extremists may release false information to distort facts,
confuse the public people’s mind and create fear and panic thorough internet.
o Maintains Morality in the Society:
 Censorship can help in maintaining morality in society.
o Prohibits the Spread of False Beliefs or Rumours:
 Government can use the Censorship for prohibiting the spread of false beliefs or rumours
and can also be used to curb access to Harmful Activities by preventing their public
display and others.
 The censorship of internet can filter the inappropriate information online and protect
children from disturbing websites, such as, child pornography, sexual violence and
detailed instructions in crime or drug use.
 Cons:
o Tool for Moral Policing:
 The practical application of the censorship legislation can end up becoming a tool of
moral policing that controls other people's lives rather than concerning itself with larger
public issues.
 The wide-ranging powers given to the regulatory body under the new rules, which is
composed of bureaucrats, also runs the risk of discretionary political control.
o Against the Constitutional Mandate of Free Speech:
 The circumferences of morality, taste, and distaste differ widely in India.
 Hence, this level of intense censorship is far off-course from the constitutional mandate of
free speech and expression as guaranteed to all Indian citizens (subject to certain
reasonable restrictions).
Way Forward

 Balanced Law is the Need of the hour:

o Censorship laws cannot be overly sensitive and should balance the equation between
maintaining objective standards of broadcasting and information dissemination on the one
hand and maintaining the fluidity of art, expression, free speech and expressional creativity on
the other.
 National Security must be Defined and Latitude allowed for Opinions:
o There must be clear rules that require authorities to demonstrate a genuine threat to
national security. This is especially important in the case of terrorism-related legislation, where
there is often limited transparency during the drafting of new powers.
 A Degree of Self-Regulation is Necessary:
o In an open society, any system of information control will depend upon a degree of self-
regulation, even if overseen by the state. The alternatives are impractical and ideologically
unacceptable.
 Proactive Approach:
o The handling of cases should be proactive in terms of notification and documentation.
 o The current system of accountability works only when the desires of local and national
media organisations overlap with the needs of a democratic society, which cannot be
guaranteed.

Judicial views

1. In S. Rangrajan v. P. Jagjivan Ram[5]the Supreme Court again confronted the question of

censorship of films vis-a-vis Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. In this case, the Madras High
Court revoked the 'U' certificate issued to a film entitled "Ore Oru Gramathile" ("In Just One
Village"), and also banned the exhibition of the film as there was some public protest against the
film. The film was critical of the reservation policy of the Government of Tamil Nadu. During the
pendency of the case, the film received the National Award by the Directorate of Film Festival of
the Government of India.

After the decision of the Madras High Court, the matter went to the Supreme Court on an appeal
and the court reiterated the importance of the freedom of speech and expression and the role of
films as a legitimate media for its exercise. The Court was of the opinion that:
"if exhibition of the film cannot be validly restricted under Article 19(2), it cannot be suppressed on
account of threat of demonstration and precessions or threat of violence. That would tantamount
to negation of the Rule of Law and surrender to blackmail and intimidation. It is the duty of the
State to protect the freedom of expression since it is a liberty guaranteed to handle the hostile
audience problem. It is its obligatory duty to prevent it and protect the freedom of expression"
2. Taking into consideration all these, Hidayatullah, C.J. made it clear that censorship of films
including pre-censorship was constitutionally valid in India as it was a reasonable restriction
within the ambit of Article 19(2).

It was also observed that pre-censorship was but an aspect of censorship and bore the same
relationship in quality to the material as censorship after the motion picture has had a run.
However, censorship should not be exercised as to cause unreasonable restrictions on the
freedom of expression. Holding the view that "pre-censorship was only an aspect of censorship
and censorship of cinematograph film was 'universal', Hidayatullah, C.J. went on to observe that
"it had been almost universally recognized that motion pictures must be treated differently from
other forms of art and expression, because a motion picture's instant appeal both to the sight and
to hearing, and because a motion picture had become more true to life than even the theatre or
any other form of artistic representation. Its effect, particularly on children and immature
adolescents was great."

The court upheld the general principles which had been laid down for the guidance of the censors
and said that the test of obscenity and principles laid down inUdeshi's case[4]applied mutatis
mutandis to an obscene cinematograph film.

Impact of media on the law-making process: a blessing

Media as a connecting link between the masses and the lawmakers

 Media plays a vital role in the lawmaking process in a democracy, especially by bringing new laws into
scrutiny by engaging in deliberations and debates that amplify the fundamentals of such legislation,
enabling the masses to interpret the law and form a conjecture.
 Media also engages in interactive measures whereby it attempts to infer the popular belief on a particular
law.
 Consequently, lawmakers tend to use the media as a tool to assess the general opinion of the masses on
any legislation.
 As long as the media resolves to provide legitimate and unbiased information to the public regarding laws
and to amplify genuine public opinion, it will positively impact the lawmaking process.
  This, however, does not negate the probability of the media running a piece of manipulative narrative
about laws and the object that they sort to achieve by fanning misinformation or biased news to the
extent that public opinion is mutilated and further amplified. This can have serious implications on the
lawmaking process in a democratic society, impeding the lawmaking process.
 Politically motivated media becomes a monstrous threat in such a scenario. The pressure created by the
media arises from the information that it provides the masses with as well as the opinion of the masses
that arises from such information. Politically biased media will delude the public and significantly alter its
beliefs. Controlled media may become incompetent to provide adequate coverage of various laws made in
the country. Such media will be ineffectual in persuading prompt action of lawmaking authorities.

Hate Speech

The Supreme Court of India had asked the Law Commission to make recommendations to the Parliament to empower the Election
Commission to restrict the problem of “hate speeches” irrespective of, whenever made. But the Law Commission recommended that
several factors need to be taken into account before restricting a speech, such as the context of the speech, the status of the maker
of the speech, the status of the victim and the potential of the speech to create discriminatory and disruptive circumstances.

o According to the 267th Report of the Law Commission of India, Hate Speech is stated as an
incitement to hatred primarily against a group of persons defined in terms of race, ethnicity, gender,
sexual orientation, religious belief, and the like.
 Thus, hate speech is any word written or spoken, signs, visible representations within the
hearing or sight of a person with the intention to cause fear or alarm, or incitement to violence.

What is obscenity
Obscenity is a legal term that refers to anything that offends a person's morals. This may be doing
something that is indecent, lewd, or obscene. Obscenity is commonly used in reference to pornography,
though it pertains to much more. The courts have found determining just what qualifies as obscenity, as it
is subject to each individual person's moral values. The term often applies to erotic content in books,
magazines, and films, as well as nude dancing. To explore this concept, consider the following obscenity
definition

Tests for Obscenity

1. Hicklin test
The Hicklin's test was laid down in English law in the case of Regina v. Hicklin. On Application of
Hicklin's test, a publication can be judged for obscenity based on the isolated part of the work
considered out of the context. While applying Hicklin's test the work is taken out of the whole
context of the work and then it is seen that if that work is creating any apparent influence on most
susceptible readers, such as children or weak-minded adults.

Indian Courts on Obscenity:

Indian Judiciary for the first time defined obscenity in the case of Ranjit D. Udeshi v. The State of
Maharashtra. In this case Hon'ble Supreme Court observed that the test of obscenity is, whether the
tendency of the matter charged as obscene is to deprave and corrupt those whose minds are open to
immoral influences, but the test of obscenity must agree with the freedom of speech and expression
guaranteed under our Constitution. Therefore, sex and nudity in art and literature cannot be regarded as
evidence of obscenity without something more.2

The Court went on to admit that obscenity has been understood in the following terms:

1. That which depraves and corrupts those whose minds are open to such immoral influences
 2. That which suggests thoughts of a most impure and libidinous character.

3. That which is hard-core pornography.

4. That which has a substantial tendency to corrupt by arousing lustful desires. That which tends to
arouse sexually impure thoughts.

5. That which passes the permissive limits judged of from our community standards.

In this case the Hicklin test was applied and given due regard by the court to judge obscenity.3 After this
case Hicklin test was continuously liberalized and applied until the recent case of Aveek Sarkar.

Obscenity

Obscenity is not protected by the First Amendment, but the Court has set the bar fairly high for
defining obscenity. In the not too distant past, officials could arbitrarily ban various published materials
that they personally deemed inappropriate. In the post-World War II period, the courts stepped in to
provide more rigorous definitions—although they are still open to considerable debate. In Miller v.
California (1973) the Court articulated a set of criteria by which lower courts could determine whether
something was officially obscene. Popularly known as the Miller Test, these standards have been
incorporated into federal and state statutes. A work—e.g., a novel, magazine, video, play, or statue—may
be declared obscene if it passes all three of the following:

1. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the work, taken as a
whole, appeals to a prurient interest in sex.

2. The work depicts or describes sexual conduct in a patently offensive way as specifically defined in an
applicable law.

3. The work, taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political, or scientific value.

If a work is determined to be obscene, it can be banned. However, many juries have difficulty coming to
consensus about obscenity, given the difficulty of passing the Miller Test.

The Internet changed the relationship between producer and consumer in the porn world just as it has in
many other commercial areas. In 1996, Congress passed the Communications Decency Act, and
President Clinton signed it into law. The law made it a federal crime to knowingly transmit to a minor—or
post on a web site where a minor might visit—any obscene, indecent, or patently offensive picture or text.
Many groups immediately sued, and the American Civil Liberties Union carried the case. In Reno v.
ACLU (1997), the Court unanimously struck down the Communications Decency Act because the law
would require that the Internet only carry information suitable for children. Quoting one of its earlier
decisions, the Court said, “the level of discourse reaching a mailbox cannot be limited to that which would
be suitable for a sandbox.”

To replace the Communications Decency Act, Congress passed the Child Online Protection Act of
1998, which threatened prison and fines for anyone caught placing material that is “harmful to minors” on
a Web site available to children under the age of seventeen. The law became the focus of a legal battle
for more than a decade until it died a quiet death in 2009 when the Supreme Court declined to review yet
another appeal. During the legal battle, most courts were uncomfortable with the broad language of the
law. In addition to the vagueness of the phrase “harmful to minors” is the problem that the law applied
local community standards to the Internet. Most federal judges and Supreme Court justices were
concerned that the law allowed any community—even the most rural and conservative—to define the
content of the Internet for everyone in the country. In distinction to this legal morass, the Supreme
Court firmly established in 1982 that bans on child pornography are constitutional, so long as the material
in question depicted an actual—as opposed to a virtual—child.

Q-What is Blasphemy?

Blasphemy is an assault on God or religion. In English customary law, the matter is suppose to be
profane in the event that it: so, in the event that you make statements about religion in such a way that
individuals become so irate
they overstep the law, at that point, you could be indicted for blasphemy.
Blasphemy used to be perilous on the grounds that it could – and did – lead to civil strife and difficulty and
will endanger the security of the state. Such a response is more uncertain in present times. Words would
possibly be impious today in the event that they were utilize in a particularly solid manner that they were
probably going to stun or
shock the sentiments of people.
The Indian Penal Code (IPC) has a provision, in any case, that can be sensibly approximated to an anti of
blasphemy law: Section 295A of the IPC punishes offending and affronting the religion or strict
convictions of any class of residents if such affront is offer with the purposeful and
noxious intention of infuriating the religious sentiments of that class.[8]
Case-

In Ramji Lal Modi versus the State of UP, chose in 1957, the editorial manager of a cow-assurance
magazine had been reserve under Section 295A, and he took his case as far as possible up to the
Supreme Court while testing the legality of the actual section. Article 19(2) of the Constitution just
considered logical limitations upon the freedom of speech in light of a legitimate concern for public order.
Section 295A, in any case, cast its net a lot more extensive, by condemning all discourse that was
propose to hurt religious sentiments. While, as a matter of fact, there could be times
when an offended strict opportunity could cause a public problem, this was not really valid for each
occurrence.
In specialized terms, this is classify as “over-broadness”: Section 295A was expansive to the point that it
covered discourse that the state could honestly control
under the Constitution (i.e., discourse or speech causing the public problem) and discourse that it proved
unable. Any speech that may have a “propensity” to prompt public problems or disorders could be
prohibited and punished. The court at that point held that Section 295A didn’t cover all types of strict
affront, however just deliberate put-downs. Also, it was the ” religious determine inclination” of deliberate
put-downs to prompt public problems. In this way, the section was sacred.
Regulation nad control of obscenity

The Information Technology Act, 2000 (“IT Act”) penalises publishing or transmission of material containing
sexually explicit act in electronic form (section 67A and 67B) and publishing or transmitting of obscene material in
electronic form (section 67), and makes them punishable with imprisonment for a period that may extend to three
and five years respectively, and as per section 77B such cybercrimes are cognizable offences. As per the provisions
of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, prevention and investigation of cognizable offences is to be done by the
police, and as per the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution, ‘Police’ is a State subject. As such, States are primarily
responsible for the prevention, investigation etc. of such cybercrimes through the State police departments, which
take preventive and penal action as per law, including in respect of the said cybercrimes pertaining to publishing or
transmitting of material containing sexually explicit act or obscene material in electronic form.
 To help achieve the aim of making Internet Open, Safe and Trusted and Accountable and to strengthen the
mechanism to deal with such cybercrimes in a coordinated manner, the Central Government, in exercise of powers
conferred by the IT Act, has made the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics
Code) Rules, 2021. These rules cast specific obligation on intermediaries, including social media intermediaries, to
observe due diligence and provide that if they fail to observe such due diligence, they shall no longer be exempt
from their liability under law for third-party information or data or communication link hosted by them. Such due
diligence includes the following:

i. To make reasonable efforts to cause the users not to host, display, upload, modify, publish, transmit, store,
update or share, among others, information which is obscene, or paedophilic, or pornographic, or is invasive
of another’s bodily privacy, or is harmful to child, or impersonates another person, or violates any law;

ii. To provide, upon receipt of an order from a lawfully authorised government agency, information or assistance
for prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution under law;

iii. To have in place a grievance redressal machinery, and resolve complaints of violation of the rules within 72
hours of being reported and, in case of a complaint by an individual or her/his authorised representative,
remove within 24 hours any content which prima facie exposes the private area of such individual, shows such
individual in full or partial nudity or shows or depicts such individual in any sexual act or conduct, or is in the
nature of impersonation in an electronic form, including artificially morphed images of such individual;

iv. In case an intermediary is a significant social media intermediary (i.e., an intermediary having more than 50
lakh registered users in India), to additionally observe due diligence in terms of appointing a Chief
Compliance Officer, a nodal contact person for 24x7 coordination with law enforcement agencies and a
Resident Grievance Officer.

v. Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995

This act prohibits the transmission of advertisements on the cable network which are not in
conformity with the Advertisement Code. The Advertisement Code is set out under Rule 7 of the
Cable Television Network Rules, 1994. Contravention of these provisions attracts liabilities. The
Advertisement Code states that no advertisement shall be permitted which derides any race,
caste, colour, creed and nationality.

The Information Technology Act, 2000

This particular act has been brought about aims to facilitate the development of a secure
regulatory environment for electronic commerce. Thus while, it is admittedly a statute leaning
towards regulation of commercial activities, it has several provisions, which refer to penalties and
offences. The legislators very clearly intend this to be the fundamental umbrella legislation to
govern computer- related activity in India.

There is a separate chapter for Offences and for the purposes of this paper the most
important provision is section 66 which is as follows:
vi.
Whoever publishes or transmits or causes to be published in the electronic form, any material
which is lascivious or appeals to the prurient interest or if its effect is such as to tend to deprave
and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all relevant circumstances, to read, see or
hear the matter contained or embodied in it, shall be punished.

The Cable Television Network Act, 1995

This act clearly mentions that 24 hours NO ADULT programme can be shown on television.

The Indecent Representation Of Women [Prohibition] Act, 1986

This act states that depiction of the figure, body, or any part of a woman's body, which is
denigrating women or likely to corrupt Public Morality is a punishable offence. The Act punishes
 the indecent representation of Women , which means the depiction in any manner of the figure of
a woman; her form or body or any part thereof in such way as to have the effect of being
indecent, or derogatory to, or denigrating women, or is likely to deprave, corrupt or injure the
public morality or morals.

Anti-Obscenity Laws in India

There are many laws in India to tackle with Obscenity some laws were too old from colonial
times, with roots in the Victorian era, but even after all these laws, it is too hard to
differentiate what is obscene or what is not. All the laws discussed below:

The Indian Penal Code 1860

Section 292 (see here) and 293 of IPC (see here) prohibit publication and sale of
obscene books, pamphlets, inter alia representation which shall be deemed to be ‘lascivious
or appeals to the prurient interests’, which can include obscene advertisements.

Section 294 (see here) prohibits obscene acts and songs. Whoever, to the annoyance of
others:

Does any obscene act in any public premises, or

Signs, recites or utters any obscene song, vulgar words, in or near any public place.
shall be punished with the confinement of either description for a term which may extend to
three months, or with fine, or with both.

Any offense related to obscenity in electronic form can be tried under the IT Act and not
under the IPC as Section 81 of the IT Act clearly states its overriding effect. But as per the
facts and circumstances of the case, provisions of both the IT Act as well as IPC could be
attracted, as done in the case of Avnish Bajaj v. the State (NCT of Delhi), 2008.

The Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition Act), 1986

The act punishes the coarse representation of women, which means “the illustration in any
other manner of the figure of women; her from or any other part thereof in such way as to
have the effect of being indecent, or outrageous to, or denigrating women, or is likely to
deprive, corrupt or injure the public virtue or morals.

Punishment

First Offence : Imprisonment upto two years and a fine of two thousand.
Repeat Offence : Imprisonment upto five years and fine of ten thousand to one lakh.

Information Technology (Amendment) Act, 2008

Section 67(A) (see here) makes it clear that a publication of sexual content on a social
media site will lead to a punishment.

Punishment

First Offence: Five years with a fine of rupees ten lakh.

 Repeat Offence: Seven years with a fine of rupees ten lakh.
Section 67(B) (see here) of the amendment is the turning point of the children movement
in India which is against child pornography this law makes it clear that not only publication,
viewing but also possession of such pornographic content is punishable.

Punishment

First Offence: Five years with a fine of rupees ten lakh.

Repeat Offence: Seven years with a fine of rupees ten lakh.

F R E E D O M O F P R E S S A N D R I G H T O F PRIVACY
Many journalists believe, as witnessed particularly in India during the last coupleof years, that the public’s right to know
and the need to expose vice and corruptionare superior to all other concerns. Most of the time it turns out to be
focusingmore on privacy of people which is turned out to be ‘newsworthy’ item in their media career. People in public
life are vulnerable when their private lives becomea spotlight for the media. The growth in mass media size, profile and
influencetogether with technological change or otherwise called ‘information revolution,’made the privacy of people so
fragile. Privacy is one of the fundamental freedomsof people and it is essential to liberty and human dignity. Media justifies
suchinterference in privacy of people arguing that it is in the public interest. Privacyis not just a concern over
personal information and the dangers of ‘surveillancesociety.’ It is more than the mere maintenance of one’s ‘data
protection,’ or confidentiality of any information.I n u s i n g t h e p e r s o n a l i n f o r m a t i o n o f p e o p l e a n d
f a c t s a b o u t e v e n t s i n a n individual’s life media has a greater responsibility. Even though there are strangelyfew odd
persons who try to seek a high profile and public recognition, to further their own interests or some cause or
philosophy they support through publiclygoing with personal details. The balance between individual’s right to
privacyand public’s right to know, is often unsteady. Ethical issues and choices arise outof it. The public’s right to
know is one of the guiding principles of journalists.They believe strongly that if officials are allowed to act in
secrecy, miscarriageso f j u s t i c e a n d c o r r u p t i o n m a y r e s u l t . I s i t a n u n o b s t r u c t e d r i g h t t o
k n o w everything? Is the public’s right to know always in ‘the public interest’?
Do journalists understand ‘the public interest’ to mean the public ‘good’, in the classicsense, or the public’s
curiosity? If we assume the public is always curious aboutthe private details of other’s lives (or pictures of their
experiences), does thatmake it right to ‘print everything you know’? Is the public always curious or arethey often
offended by the information or photographs put before them, and arethe media therefore out of step with the very
audience they claim to serve? Theseare the serious concerns in media ethics. Simple check before a journalist
whendeciding whether to print or broadcast a piece of information or a picture: Is ittrue? Is it fair? And is it
necessary? (Gail Hulnick “Defining the Line Betweenthe Public’s Right to Know and the Individual’s Right to
Privacy”

Internet as a platform of free speech

Article 19 of the Indian constitution provides the right to freedom and guarantees these Individual rights.
It gives the assurance of freedom of speech and expression. This law finds its root in the hate speech law
passed by the British administration under section 295 (A) to safeguard Muslims from hate speech. India
is considered to be the first country to constitute the India bill 1895 for containing the following provision of
free speech and expression. Every citizen was given the right to express one’s thoughts in writing and get
them published without the fright of censure but they were required to answer for committing the same in
the exercise of this right.

The Positive Impact Of The Internet On Freedom Of Speech And Expression

 It provides great coverage and expands the reach of opinions and beliefs. The person sitting in
Canada can share his views with a person sitting in India.
  It has fastened the process of spreading the news to the general public and apprise about
upcoming dangers.
 Anyone can send an instant message through any social media app and does not have to wait to
send or receive letters from one side to another.
 It helps in engaging and providing people with numerous job opportunities.
Negative Impact Of The Internet On Freedom Of Speech And Expression

 The spread of fake news is one of the most devasting impacts that the internet is done on
personal expression.
 Unlimited freedom is also an issue for a healthy democracy.
 Smutty material is frequent which downgrades the level of the impact made on freedom of
speech.
 There is bounded regulation of free speech on the internet.
INTERNET AND ITS IMPACT ON FREE SPEECH
INTRODUCTION

The Internet has had a tremendous impact on free speech. It has allowed people to communicate and
express their opinions freely, without fear of censorship or retribution. People are able to post their
thoughts and views on any topic, no matter how controversial or unpopular, without fear of being silenced
or censored. The Internet has created an open forum for people to express their ideas and opinions
without fear of being silenced or punished. This has allowed for the development of new ideas and the
spread of information, which has had a positive impact on society as a whole.

The Internet has allowed for the creation of online forums, blogs, and social media platforms, which have
enabled people to share their thoughts and views with others. This has allowed for the development of
new ideas and has allowed for the spread of information on any topic. Additionally, the Internet has also
allowed for the discussion of controversial topics, which would not have been possible before. Overall, the
Internet has had a profound impact on free speech. It has enabled people to communicate freely and
express their opinions without fear of censorship or retribution. This has allowed for the development of
new ideas, the spread of information, and the discussion of controversial topics.

IMPACT OF FREE SPEECH UNDER ARTICLE 19

Free speech has a significant impact on society. It is one of the most important rights that citizens of a
democracy have. Free speech allows people to express themselves and their opinions without fear of
reprisal or censorship. This freedom of expression is essential for healthy debate and dialogue, which are
essential for democracy to thrive. Free speech also allows people to challenge the status quo and to
question authority. This can lead to positive changes in society, as people are given an opportunity to
express their ideas and concerns. Additionally, free speech can help to create a more tolerant and
understanding society, by allowing people to understand the perspectives of those who are different from
them. As per Article 19 of the Indian Constitution, all citizens have the right to freedom of speech and
expression. This right has helped to ensure that people can express themselves without fear of reprisal or
censorship. It has also helped to promote healthy dialogue and debate, which is essential for democracy
to function properly

In conclusion, free speech under Article 19 of the Indian Constitution has had a positive impact on
society. It has helped to create a more tolerant and understanding society, while also allowing people to
express themselves without fear of reprisal or censorship. It has also helped to promote healthy dialogue
and debate, which is essential for democracy to thrive.
THE POSITIVE IMPACT OF INTERNET ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSION

The internet has had a profound effect on freedom of speech and expression around the world. It has
allowed people to share their views, opinions and beliefs with a much larger audience than ever before.
The internet has also enabled people to access information and ideas from around the world, allowing
them to form their own opinions and to engage in meaningful dialogue with like-minded individuals. This
has led to an increase in the diversity of viewpoints, allowing for a more open and inclusive discussion of
important topics. The internet has also enabled people to access a wealth of information that was
previously unavailable, enabling them to make informed decisions on matters of importance. Finally, the
internet has enabled the formation of virtual communities and networks, allowing individuals to connect
with each other and to share their views in a safe and secure environment. All of these aspects have
contributed to an increase in freedom of speech and expression around the world.

THE NEGATIVE IMPACT OF INTERNET ON FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSION

Internet freedom of speech and expression have been greatly affected in recent years. Governments and
corporations have increasingly restricted access to certain types of content, and implemented policies that
limit the ability of individuals to express their views. This has been done largely in the name of protecting
national security and preventing the spread of terrorist propaganda and hate speech. But it has also been
used to silence political dissent and criticism of government policies, and to restrict access to information
that could empower citizens and help them make informed decisions. In addition, online censorship and
the manipulation of online conversations through algorithms and artificial intelligence have further limited
freedom of expression on the internet.

Cyber defamationDefamation has become a subject of concern. With the rise of so-called
trends of sharing or posting information or pictures on certain social networking sites and
commenting on them have increased the risk of ‘Cyber Defamation’.

The term ‘Cyber Defamation’ basically means publishing of false statement about an
individual in cyberspace that can injure or demean the reputation of that individual. In
India, defamation can be contemplated as both civil and criminal offence, and thus legal
remedies are provided to the victims by the Indian judiciary system.

Cyber defamation involves defaming a person through a new and far more effective method
such as the use of modern Electronic devices. It refers to the publishing of defamatory
material against any person in cyberspace or with the help of computers or the Internet. If
a person publishes any kind of defamatory statement against any other person on a website
or sends E-mails containing defamatory material to that person to whom the statement has
been made would tantamount to Cyber defamation.

Libel defamation means ‘injury on name and reputation of individual or institution through a written
statement while slander defamation means causing such injury through oral words or statements to
defame character and reputation.

Its dimension pervades across illegal access, illegal interception, data interference and offense related to
child pornography, misuse of devices, etc. This also includes computer-related forgery, fraud, and offense
related system interference and copyright, etc
Section 66A, Information Technology Act,2000 – This law has been struck down by
Supreme Court in the year 2015. The section defined punishment for sending ‘offensive’
messages through a computer, mobile or tablet. Since the government did not clarify the
word ‘offensive’. The government started using it as a tool to repress freedom of speech. In
2015, the whole section was quashed by the Supreme Court.

Section 66A of IT Act – any person who sends, through a computer resource or a communication device:
Any information that is grossly offensive or has menacing character; or

Any content information which he knows to be false, but to cause annoyance, inconvenience, danger,
obstruction, insult, injury, criminal intimidation, enmity, hatred, or ill will, persistently makes by making use
of such computer resource or a communication device;

If a person has been defamed in cyberspace, he can make a complaint to the cyber
crime investigation cell. It is a unit of the Crime Investigation Department.

These articles were considered and applied by Kirby J in the internet defamation case of Dow Jones v
Gutnick. (The case concerned the reputation of a Melbourne-based businessman, Joseph Gutnick, who
alleged that the Dow Jones corporation defamed him by publishing an article titled ‘Unholy Gains’
in Barrons, an international financial magazine. Barrons could be purchased in hardcopy or readers could
subscribe online.) According to Kirby J:

Cross border Defamation In the past decade, social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter
have gone from being a novelty to becoming an essential part of many people's personal and
professional lives. Like previous changes in communications technology, social media poses a legal
challenge. Can existing laws be applied or adapted to this new context, or does it pose new problems
requiring new solutions? This article examines one aspect of this question through an analysis of the
private international law issue of what law applies (or should be applied) to cross-border defamation
claims on social media. Cross-border defamation raises a range of issues, including private international
law questions regarding which courts should adjudicate claims and which substantive law should be
applied. While the jurisdictional issues are important and have a significant impact on the issues of
applicable law, there are distinct questions and concerns raised by the choice of law question for cross-
border defamation on social media. Indeed, it is a topic which perhaps raises some of the most difficult
issues in private international law, as well as having important broader consequences for media law and
free speech regulation. At a general level, it concerns choice of law in defamation, which has proven a
particularly challenging subject in practice and in proposed law reforms – at present it remains excluded
from both UK and EU statutory rules concerning choice of law in tort. More specifically, it concerns
defamation online, a context which might be grounds for suggesting that a further specialised rule is
required – a view taken by the ECJ in relation to jurisdiction over online defamation. And finally, it
concerns defamation online on social media, which raises challenging issues in terms of adapting the law
to new media contexts, as well as identifying the relevant ‘public’ within which a reputation is established.
These are not just difficult practical questions, arising with increasing frequency in litigation, but also
problems of principle which have broader implications. As social media become increasingly important
modes of socialisation and communication, greater attention will need to be paid to the question of whose
law governs standards of free speech on social media platforms – an important part of the question of
whose law rules ‘Facebookistan’.
Forum shopping or choice of forum

Forum shopping or the plaintiff’s choice of forum is a process commonly practised in the
USA and is becoming an area of concern discouraged by the courts of law. In the federal
system, each state is governed by different procedural laws and sometimes even different
substantive laws. Thus, certain issues come under concurrent jurisdiction which means that
the issue can be resolved by more than one court, all equally competent in exercising their
jurisdiction over the issue. Thus, the plaintiff uses this choice available to him/her to his/her
advantage and brings the issue to that court which is likely to produce a verdict that will be
most beneficial to the plaintiff and most deleterious to the defendant. The factors governing
the choice of forum vary and can even include the kind of jury, whether local or federal,
whichever is more likely to have a favourable impact on the plaintiff.

Choice of Law
Parties can end up negotiating the choice of governing law where they reside in
different jurisdictions, a transaction occurs in different jurisdictions or the law of one
jurisdiction is more advantageous than another. Once the governing law is chosen,
the selected law becomes the law of the contract and will generally be upheld by
courts, provided that it is bona fide, legal and not contrary to public policy.

Where there is no express law chosen, courts may choose the law that has the
closest and most substantial connection with the parties or the transaction.

The terms ‘conflict of law’ and ‘choice of law’ are often used interchangeably in cases where
a dispute spans over two different jurisdictions.

A historical review of obscenity law begins with the English case, Regina v. Hicklin
(1868), which established a strict test for obscenity that was later adopted in the
United States. This test permitted courts to view isolated passages of a book and
judge them according to their harmful effects upon the most susceptible individuals.
By the 1950's, the application of obscenity law varied considerably throughout the
United States and was ripe for adjudication by the Supreme Court.

Tests of obscenity

The Oxford dictionary defines obscene as ‘offensive or disgusting by accepted standards of

morality and decency.’

Indian society has always taken a conservative approach towards the purity of women. It is
considered an important point in preserving the reputation of the family. There are mainly
three tests to check the content or any art or gesture is really obscene or not.

Miller test

Miller test is a famous test applied by the United States of America, it is named after the
U.S Supreme Court decision in Miller v. California (1973) (see here). This test faced
challenges with online obscenity cases. In this case, Melvin Miller mailed five distrustful
brochures to the manager of the restaurant which contained conspicuous images and
drawing of men and women engaged in different sexual activities. After the manager read
the mail, he filed the case of Obscenity against Mr. Miller and he was prosecuted for
violating the California Law. There are three parts of the Miller test. They are:

 The average person, enforcing the contemporary community standards, would

find that work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.
 Whether the work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual
conduct specially defined by the applicable state law.
 The work, taken as a whole, short of serious literary, artistic, political or
scientific value.
The work is considered obscene only if all three conditions are satisfied. The first two points
of this test are for the standards of the community, and the last point is held to a person of
the United State as a whole.

Hicklin test

This test is a legal test for obscenity came from the English case Regina v. Hicklin
(1868) (see here). The case totally based on the interpretation of the word “obscene”. This
test is very liberal, in this test The Henry Scott, who resold copies of anti-catholic pamphlets
entitled “The Confessional Unmasked”, showing the defilement of the Romish Priesthood,
the iniquity of the confessional and the questions put to females confession. When the
pamphlets were ordered destroyed as obscene, Benjamin Hicklin, the bureaucrat in charge
of such orders as recorder, revoked the order of extermination. Hicklin held that Scott’s
purpose had not been to corrupt public morals but the expose the major issues related to
the Catholic Church; so Scott’s intention was innocent. Lord Chief Alexadar Cockburn,
writing for the court of Queen’s bench, a broad definition of obscenity, based on
ascertaining “whether the tendency of the matter is to deprave and corrupt those whose
minds are open to such immoral influences and into whose hands a publication of this sort
may fall”.

In the landmark judgment of Ranjit Udeshi v. the State of Maharashtra (1964) the Supreme
Court adopted the Victorian-era Hicklin test. The test assessed obscenity by the standard of
an individual who was open to immoral influences and would likely to be corrupted or
depraved by the material in question. A wide range of material could be ‘obscene’ using this
test.

Origin, Reality & Misuse of Provisions

A major incident in the British era took place where in the mid-1920s and Arya Samajist writer wrote a
book called "Ranglia Rasool", referring to the holy prophet which Muslims found offensive. He was then
assassinated and the murderer was hailed as a hero. In order to correct this loophole British introduced
section 295A. It was previously to prevent publication of books like that or articles, cartoons, speech etc.
were also covered. Section 295A has been in the books since 1927.

Since the acts end the sections state that's the offense is cognizable and non-bailable, it can be misused
at a great deal because it's for any plaintiff to say that whatever somebody said I felt insulted. Example,
Raj Kapoor film song, "Kaafir Sharab", raised a philosophical point which in today's world may sound
offensive and can be traced as an offence under blasphemy. Amir Khan's P.K. also faced huge backlash
from all religious communities. Section 295A is open to all kinds of interpretation, due to which many
cases around can be easily called as an offense under this section.
Blasphemy Laws in India
India being a diverse country and with ample of religion, also have some kinds of blasphemy laws, which
don't use the term directly, but mean the same, they can be easily understood by a little interpretation.

1. Section 295 of Indian Penal Code:

According to Section 295 of the I.P.C, anyone found guilty of destroying, damaging, or defiling a
house of worship or a sacred object with the aim to disparage the faith of a group of people faces
up to two years in prison, a fine, or a combination of the two. To oblige people to respect the
religious sensitivities of people of different religious persuasions or creeds, this clause has been
adopted.

2. Section 295A of Indian Penal Code.

The purpose of Section 295A is to prohibit intentional and malicious conduct meant to offend any
class's religious sentiments by shielding their religion or religious beliefs. Only when an
aggravated form of insult to religion is committed with the purposeful and malicious goal of
upsetting the religious sentiments of a class is it punishable under this clause.

There was a major verdict of the Apex court, which somehow tries to explain the applicability of
section 295A, which was in the case of Mahendra Singh Dhoni v. Yerraguntla Shyamsundar
and Another, in which the Supreme Court held that the section does not criminalize every act
which insults or attempts to insult religious sentiments. It only criminalizes those acts which are
intentional as well as malicious in nature.

Additionally, there have been numerous constitutional defenses of blasphemy laws,

including Ramji Lal Modi v. State of Uttar Pradesh. The five-judge panel in this case upheld the
legality of section 295A. The defendant, Mr. Ramji Lal, served as the magazine's editor. He was
accused of posting articles that were offensive to religion. According to Mr. Ramji Lal, his right to
free expression is properly protected by article 19 (1) (a) of the constitution, and as a result, his
content is likewise protected by the same provision.

3. Section 153A of Indian Penal Code.

The intent of Section 153 A is to punish those who engage in willful denigration of or attacks on
any particular group or class, as well as its founders and prophets, or on grounds of race, religion,
nationality, place of birth, domicile, or language. The scope of this Section is expanded to include
the propagation of hostility, animosity, hatred, or other negative emotions toward other castes,
communities, racial groups, or ethnicities. In this section, the offence of moral turpitude is also
covered.

The offence is a cognizable offence, and the maximum sentence is three years in prison, a fine,
or a combination of the two. This section too falls under the category of Blasphemy Laws.

Blasphemy laws in India

Right to the religion of individuals to practice, profess and propagate not only religion but
multifarious denominations thereof is embodied into the constitution of India. Same
provisions also put reasonable restrictions on both, the state and the individual, as the
exercise of the same rights should not impinge public order, morality and national security
of the country. If the state abridges an Indian of his right to religion than he may move to
the apex court under article 32, but what if an individual violates aforesaid rights? To
protect the rights of one individual against the other chapter XV was added to Indian penal
code in 1927 as ‘offences relating to religion’. These are the very blasphemy laws of
India. This chapter covers the following sections:
 Section 295: If any person intentionally damages, destroys or defiles any religious
object deemed to be sacred by followers of any religion in India, including objects
other than idols and books is punishable under this section. He shall be punished
with imprisonment up to two years or fine, or both.
Section 295A: if a person maliciously by words spoken or written or signs or by
visible representation insults or attempts to insult religious sentiments of any class
of citizens of India then he may be punished under this section. A person can be
imprisoned for 3 years or fined, or both if charged under Section 295A of the
Indian Penal Code.
Section 296: if a person intentionally causes disturbance to any lawful religious
assembly and ceremonies thereof he shall be punishable under this section and he
can be imprisoned for one year or fined or both.
Section 297: if a person intentionally trespasses any burial place knowing that this
act of his may hurt the religious sentiments of any class of citizens is punishable
under this section. This provision is said to protect the religious rights of even
dead persons. Punishment under this section is imprisonment up to one year or
fine or both.
Section 298: This is a peculiar provision in this chapter as all the offences under this
chapter of Indian penal code are cognizable, bailable, non- compoundable, but
offence under this section is compoundable, non-cognizable and non-bailable. Any
person, who intentionally utters any words, makes any sound or signs, visible or
audible, as the case may be, to the aggrieved, as to hurt the religious feelings of
the person, maybe punished under this section. Now it may seem reasonable why
it is a compoundable and non-cognizable offence. It is compoundable only by the
person whose religious sentiments have been hurt. An offender can be imprisoned
for one year or fine or both under this section.
Section 154 of the Indian Penal Code prohibits the incitement of hatred in name of religion
but this section does not protect any religion but rather it protects the right of an individual
to practice his or her religion.

In northern India, in the state of Punjab, there are some state amendments to this part of
the penal code. Section 295AA was inserted in the code and it incorporated the punishment
of life imprisonment for the offence of blasphemy in Punjab. This was criticized because only
selected religious objects were placed under the section and not all. It was inserted in the
year 2018 as religious tensions were surging continuously at this time in Punjab.

LAW AND PRIVACY In this part, we document the rise of confidentiality, privacy, and informed consent in three
specific contexts: (A) confidentiality of United States Census data; (B) the emergence of a "right to be let alone;"
and (C) the rise of "information privacy" and continued threats of secondary uses. In so doing, we note how
American jurisprudence has only recently concerned itself with questions of privacy. Indeed, the concept of privacy
is barely a century old and has been the subject of legal indifference for much of that time. Despite the relative
novelty of legally protected privacy rights, policymakers have long recognized tensions between society's need for
data and individuals' fear of misuse. In the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, these tensions often manifested
themselves in a mistrust of governmental purpose, particularly with regard to participation in the United States
Census of Population and the Census of Manufactures. As the nineteenth and twentieth centuries progressed,
however, government policies addressed these concerns by developing three distinct legal frameworks: (i)
confidentiality of personal information; (ii) regulatory pledges to avoid secondary unintended uses of personal
information without informed consent; and (iii) enacting sanctions, if seldom used, to punish government agencies
or agents that breach confidentiality and informed consent requirements.

Confidentiality is an ethical duty that prevents certain people from sharing information with third parties.
Privacy is the right to freedom from intrusion into one's personal matters or information.
Privacy and confidentiality are two separate concepts that protect different types of information. 'Privacy'
is used in relation to information that is protected under law (normally under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth)),
whereas 'confidentiality' refers to different information contained in valid contracts and agreements.
What are the concepts of privacy and confidentiality?

Confidentiality is an ethical duty that prevents certain people from sharing information with third parties.
Privacy is the right to freedom from intrusion into one's personal matters or information. Privacy has roots
in common law and the Fourth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
What is role of media in human rights?
The equation between human rights and mass media is symbiotic. In India, the freedom of press flows
from the rights to freedom of expression to citizens. Hence, it is the responsibility of the Media to ensure
that everyone in the society enjoys the privilege of human rights

So, access to media is a human right, but what is the media’s responsibility to human rights? Free media
is essential to human rights because, without information, people won’t know what’s going on locally,
nationally, or internationally. Their ability to respond to laws, policies, and events – including human rights
violations – is limited by ignorance. Free media has a responsibility to share information and help explain
that information to the public in a clear, accessible way. The media also has a duty to hold people in
power accountable. The Catholic Archdiocese of Boston sex abuse scandal is a clear example of the
media’s role in protecting human rights.
MediaasthepromoterofhumanrightsinIndia
Since media are the eyes and ears of any democratic society, their existence becomes detrimental to the sustenance of all
democratic societies. Unless a society knows what is happening to it and itsmembers, the question of protecting or promoting
rights does not emerge. Hence, it is in fulfillingthis function that media justifies its existence. No doubt in
India, media especially the print, has played an important role in educating andinforming citizens of their rights as well as
the violations of such rights. One cannot forget that
theo r i g i n o f n e w s p a p e r s i n I n d i a i t s e l f l a y i n c h a l l e n g i n g t h e d e n i a l o f r i g h t s .

Similarly, the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) stipulates that:
Article 16

1. No child shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, or
correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his or her honour and reputation.

2. The child has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks.

Article 40 of the Convention, states that the privacy of a child accused of infringing penal law
should be protected at all stages of the proceedings.

What is Information Privacy?

Privacy is someone's right to tell or not to tell someone their information. They or
their information is free from being seen by someone else. Everyone has a moral
right to privacy, as well as a legal right to privacy when it comes to personal
information. When personal information is leaked it can do detrimental harm to
someone, both personally and financially, depending on the situation.
To protect a person's information, certain measures have been put into place. One
such measure is that of information privacy, also known as data privacy. Data
privacy is a broad term and is specific to organizations and government systems that
utilize it. The goal of data privacy is to make sure that a person's personal, financial,
and medical information stays private and is protected by various means.
There are two types of personally identifiable information and confidential
information that needs to be protected via data privacy. The two types of data are
data in transit and data at rest. All data has the ability to move and flow. Data in
transit is data that is currently being used. Data at rest is data that is not actively
being used. Data privacy applies to many different organizations, but each
organization regulates data differently. The method of data regulation is specified
through data protection policies that are outlined by the organization and then
adhered to, to protect people's information
Information Privacy Laws
There are many different privacy laws enacted to protect the privacy of all
individuals. The Privacy Act was enacted in 1974 to protect information. It lists how
information is to be gathered, used, and disseminated over time from within the
Federal Agencies. All organizations should adhere to the information privacy law.
The Privacy Act is overseen by the Federal Trade Commission.

scope of the right

The scope of the right to privacy is very broad. It protects personal information and data collection, for
example. It also extends to a person’s private life more generally, so protects the individual against
interference with their physical and mental integrity, including appearance, clothing and gender; sexuality
and home.

This right protects the privacy of people in Queensland from ‘unlawful’ or ‘arbitrary’ interference. Arbitrary
interference includes when something is lawful, but also unreasonable, unnecessary or disproportionate.

The protection against an attack on someone’s reputation is limited to unlawful attacks. This means
attacks that are intentional and based on untrue allegations.

While the right to privacy is very broad, it must be balanced against other rights and competing interests.
Like all rights in the Act, the right to privacy and reputation can be limited where it is reasonable and
demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society based on human dignity, equality and freedom.

Children right to privacy

the storage of private data of anyone is subjected to freedom and privacy. The larger and
reputable companies have privacy terms and conditions regarding the safety of such data.

The safety of these data depends upon the technical skills, safety concerns, and expertise of
the agencies who store such data for their own purposes. There is an identity of a person
over the internet which is called digital identity.

Children in the modern world are more exposed to the internet due to various activities
essentially forming a part of their life. From online entertainment like gaming and web
series platforms to online education and social media interaction, children leave their digital
footprints everywhere unknowingly. Artificial intelligence and online websites encourage the
participation of children accessing various services which even ease off their studies and
projects. However, behind the digital world, the children are not mature enough to
understand the broad term of “online privacy”. They deem online privacy a term to get
enclosed and make a distance from their parents without letting them know the websites
and the platforms they are using and visiting. Amidst such issues, legal complications also
arise. The children are legally minors and hence are mentally prepared to provide consent to
the big data stakeholders to store their “digital identities”. Parental consent is necessary for
storing the children’s data. So the low consciousness, lack of knowledge about online data
privacy let the children be exposed to cyber threats like data theft, cyberbullying, etc. In the
growing digital environment and increasing participation of Children, it has become
necessary to protect their “right to privacy”. Today, the state must ensure the right to
participation of the children and ensure their right to privacy from commercial actors, peers
without putting any kind of restrictions over them.

Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (USA)

The United States of America has enacted its children’s privacy protection laws back in 2000
namely Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). It empowered the Federal Trade
Commission to make and enact regulations for the protection and enactment of the
regulations dealing with Children’s online privacy. The COPPA regulates the collection of
data from children who come under the age group of 13. The law protects the children’s
privacy by restricting the operators of online websites and commercial service to collect any
kind of data of the children coming under the age group of 13 without their parental
consent.
Incidences in India that exposed the vulnerabilities of children’s data privacy

In recent years several incidents have happened in India that have exposed the online
privacy of the children. Two years before havoc of Blue whale game had appeared in the
online gaming world where several children had committed suicide in Indian states because
it was a part of the task to be done in the game. The administrator extracted the digital
identities of the children and threatened the children on any step they refused to fulfil the
tasks. Due to lack of proper laws on the protection of online privacy, the Courts had to
intervene in ordering the removal of apps from the Google play store.

The personal data protection bill 2019: provisions protecting children’s online data

The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019 in the Parliament in December 2019. The personal
data protection bill seeks to protect the personal data of the individual and establishment of
a data protection authority for the same. Chapter IV of the Personal data protection bill
provides provisions for the processing of personal data and sensitive personal data of the
children. It further provides that the personal data processing shall be done by the
government, companies incorporated in India and foreign companies dealing with the
personal data, collectively known as “data fiduciary”. Section 16 of the bill lays down the
grounds regarding the processing of data. It states that every fiduciary shall process the
data in such a manner that serves the best interest of the children, protecting the rights of
the children. the Data Protection Authority, a regulating body incorporated under the
provisions of the Act shall have the right to protect the interest of individuals and prevent
the misuse of data. In case the data fiduciary is found to have indulged in violation or
irregularities while processing of data, it shall be punished with a fine of 15 crores or 4
percent of the total annual turnover whichever is higher.
 Commonly referred to as the “Privacy Bill”, it intended to protect individual rights by regulating the
collection, movement, and processing of data that is personal, or which can identify the individual.
 The govt withdrew the bill due to various concerns raised by technology giants and other issues
raised by the common people.

Importance of data protection concerning the Right to Privacy

Individuals must be involved in decisions about their data, and states and companies
collecting and recording personal data must be transparent about the data they hold, follow
fair and lawful processes for the collection, use, retention, and security of that data, and
ensure that personal data collected for one purpose is not used for another. The data
protection legislation may be misused in order to prevent, halt, or limit the lawful public
conveyance of personal data at the expense of personal data access and the greater public
interest.

are the Government Steps to Protect Privacy?

 B N Srikrishna Committee:
o Government appointed a committee of experts on data protection under the chairmanship of
Justice B N Srikrishna that submitted its report in July 2018.
 Information Technology Act, 2000:
o The IT Act provides for safeguard against certain breaches in relation to data from computer
systems. It contains provisions to prevent the unauthorized use of computers, computer
systems and data stored therein.

Public access to judicial process

The principle of public participation holds that those who are affected by a decision have a right to be
involved in the decision-making process. Public participation implies that the public's contribution will
influence the decision.[1][2] Public participation may be regarded as a form of empowerment and as vital
part of democratic governance.[2] In the context of knowledge management the establishment of ongoing
participatory processes is seen by some in the facilitator of collective intelligence and inclusiveness,
shaped by the desire for the participation of the whole community or society.[2]

Public participation is part of "people centred" or "human centric" principles, which have emerged
in Western culture over the last thirty years, and has had some bearings of education, business, public
policy and international relief and development programs. Public participation is advanced by
the humanist movements. Public participation may be advanced as part of a "people first" paradigm shift.
In this respect public participation may challenge the concept that "big is better" and the logic of
centralized hierarchies, advancing alternative concepts of "more heads are better than one" and arguing
that public participation can sustain productive and durable change.[3]

Civil Remedies for Copyright Infringement

The civil remedies for copyright infringement are covered under Section 55 of the Copyright
Act of 1957. The different civil remedies available are:

1) Interlocutory Injunctions

The most important remedy is the grant of an interlocutory injunction. In most case the
application filled is for interlocutory relief and the matter rarely goes beyond the
interlocutory stage. There are three requirements for there to be a grant of interlocutory
injunction – Firstly, a prima facie case. Secondly, there needs to be a balance of
convenience. Finally, there needs to be an irreparable injury.

2) Pecuniary Remedies

Copyright owners can also seek three pecuniary remedies under Section 55 and 58 of the
Copyright Act of 1957. First, an account of profits which lets the owner seek the sum of
money made equal to the profit made through unlawful conduct. Second, compensatory
damages which let the copyright owner seek the damages he suffered due to the
infringement. Third, conversion damages which are assessed according to the value of the
article.
3) Anton Pillar Orders

The Anton pillar order gets its name from the holding in Anton Pillar AG V. Manufacturing
Processes. The following elements are present in an Anton Pillar Order – First, an injunction
restraining the defendant from destroying or infringing goods. Second, an order permitting
the plaintiff’s lawyer to search the defendant’s premises and take goods in their safe
custody. Third, an order that the defendant be directed to disclose the names and addresses
of suppliers and consumers.

4) Mareva Injunction

The Mareva injunction comes into play when the court believes that the defendant is trying
to delay or obstruct the execution of any decree being passed against him. The court has
the power to direct him to place whole or any part of his property under the court’s disposal
as may be sufficient to satisfy the decree. This is provided in Order XXXVIII, Rule 5 of The
Civil Procedure Code, 1908.

5) Norwich Pharmacal Order

The Norwich Pharmacal Order is usually passed when information needs to be discovered
from a third party.

Criminal Remedies

Under the Copyright Act, 1957 the following remedies are provided for infringement:

Imprisonment up to 3 years but, not less than 6 months

Fine which may not be less than 50,000 but, may extend up to 2,00,000
Search and seizure of infringing goods
Delivery of infringing goods to the copyright owner

 Remedies against Infringement

 There are three kinds of remedies against infringement of copyright, namely:

 1. Civil remedies

 Injunction damages or account of profit, delivery of infringing copy and damages for conversion.

 2. Criminal remedies

 Imprisonment of the accused or imposition of fine or both. Seizure of infringing copies

 3. Administrative remedies

 Administrative remedies consist of moving the Registrar of copyrights to ban the import of
infringing copies into India when the infringement is by way of such importation and the delivery
of the confiscated infringing copies to the owner of the copyright and seeking the delivery.

 Jurisdiction of Courts
  A suit or other civil proceedings relating to infringement of copyright is filed in the District Court or
High Court within whose jurisdiction the plaintiff resides or carries on business or where the
cause of action arose irrespective of the place of residence or place of business of the defendant

 Limitation

 The period of limitation for filing the suit is three years from the date of infringement.

Copy Right Issues in the Media Industry

Author’s work is legally protected by the copyright. After copyright, the work
immediately becomes the property of the author. With the reality shows becoming
popular, a lot of competition has been generated between and among channels to
hunt employees of the rival channel or to get a secret view of their script. This
causes a huge loss to the author, as well as the channel.
In order to fund the serial, it becomes imperative that the script is shared with
prospective investors. Since there is no documentary evidence of sharing, the
same can be misused anytime and used for the personal gain without giving any
financial or other credits to the owner. This can be best avoided by using legal
means to secure your rights.
Copyright does not protect the idea, per se. But if it is made into a tangible thing,
like a script, or an email, the expression or documentation can prove the date of
origin and the owner. This will help you along with a Non-disclosure agreement to
protect your interests.
Need for Copyright Protection

It is important to note that copyright protects the way in which the idea is presented, rather
than the idea itself; for example, if it is committed to paper or another piece of media.

Copyrights should be protected because it ensures certain minimum safeguards for author’s
rights over their creations, thus protecting and rewarding their creativity. In the case of
literary, musical or artistic works, copyrights may last another 70 years after the death of
the original creators and in the broadcast or publishing cases this period may extend to 50
years.

If someone infringes your copyright, you will have legal grounds to sue the guilty party
either to pay you a license or to compensate you for any financial loss you may have
incurred. If they use your work without your knowledge, you have the right to stop them
doing so and to receive compensation for any earnings they have earned on the back of
your work.
Copyright Protection

While copyright does not protect information or ideas on its own, it does protect the original
expression of information and ideas. Copyright applies only to literary, dramatic, musical
and artistic works. The rights which apply to each of these categories vary.

Copyright does not protect against the independent creation of similar works. Legal action
against infringement is complicated by the fact that many different copyrights may exist for
certain works – in particular for films, broadcasts and multimedia products. Unlike other
forms of intellectual property, registration does not confer copyright; instead, it
automatically results from the creation of the original work in a material form.
As per the Indian Copyright Act section 13 of Chapter III, the protection is given to the
following works:

1. Literary works;
2. Musical works;
3. Dramatic works;
4. Artistic works;
5. Cinematograph films;
6. Architectural works;
7. Sound recordings;
8. Computer program/software.

To gain copyright protection the work should have the following-

1. The work must be original (Original meaning, created from inspiration and not
borrowed from any other existing sources. The work must have been created for
the first time)
2. It must be fixed in some measurable form. The presentation of the work must be
descriptive and physical and must be capable of being recognized in a fixed
form/recognized in its nature.
3. First publication An original work should not be published before.
4. Work published after the death of the author; at the time of death, the author
must be a citizen of India.
5. In the event of work published in India, the author must be a citizen of India at
that time.
What is music piracy?

Music piracy is form of copyright infringement where the recording of the music is copied and distributed
as a whole or a piece without the consent of the copyright owner. Music piracy can either be a civil wrong
or a crime depending on the jurisdiction of the country in which the infringement has taken place. Music
piracy takes place either by way of copying and distributing hardware such as CDs and DVDs or through
digital form known as online music piracy.

Reasons for people's involvement in music piracy

i. One of the main reasons for people to do piracy is because of the amount decided by the
producers or the company for their products. People need the product for free which allows the
huge torrent websites to use the opportunities to pirate the same product and give them to the
people for free.

ii. Another main reason for online piracy is that the people find it difficult to appreciate a movie or a
music album at a desired time

iii. It also stands for a reason that many people may be unable to afford it even if they are willing to
buy them at the original price. Thus leading them to support piracy because of their incapacity to
buy or because of the price is expensive enough for normal people to buy.

iv. Another reason is because of the mindset of the people most of the people think that why need to
spend money when you can get the same stuff for free

v. Another reason for piracy is that delay in making the song available for people in a country.
 vi. People also felt it is unnecessary to buy a original song if they are only using it only once as the
price for a original album maybe expensive, thus people opted for pirated goods available at free
of cost.

Effect of Indian copyright laws on online music piracy

Indian copyright act came into force in the year 1957 after replacing the previous copyright act of 1914. In
the copyright act, 1957 sec 52A[15] which explains what particulars has to be included in sound recording
and video films. Sec 52A(1) states that no person shall publish a sound recording in respect of any work
unless the following particulars are displayed on the sound recording and on any container thereof,
namely:

a. The name and address of the person who has made the sound recording

b. The name and address of the owner of the copyright in such work and

c. The year of its first publication.

Indian copyright act states that in the case of infringement of copyright the offender shall be punishable
with imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than six months but which may extend to three years
and with fine which shall not be less than fifty thousand rupees but which may extend two lakh rupees
provided under special reasons and circumstances the court on mentioning the reason in the judgment
can impose a sentence of imprisonment for a term of less than six months or a fine of less than fifty
thousand rupees[16].

Even after amending the copyright act several times it still lacks some features to control music piracy.
Indian copyright act does not explicitly mention about online music piracy but the provision itself does not
constrain itself only to hardware way of piracy it impliedly provides guidance for online piracy.

Copyright right law on music piracy

International laws and conventions play a major role in implementing national laws in member countries.
Copyright is one of the subjects which is harmonised by international laws to implement in the member
countries. Conventions like BERNE, TRIPS, and WIPO deals with copyright protection. Mainly WIPO
treaties such as WCT and WPPT extended its rights to the digital age and provide legal protection under
article 11 of WCT[10] and article 18 of WPPT[11] against the circumvention of technological protection
measures.

India is also joined WIPO and become one of its member countries where the national law is yet to be
implemented. Delhi high court in the case of UTV Software communication Ltd[12] for the very first time
issued dynamic injunction[13] which is in consideration with Singapore High Court's decision in Disney v.
M1 Ltd[14]

In comparison with other countries India globally ranks 2nd in the highest rate of piracy, where many
countries initiated several measures to completely curb online music piracy such as preventing even VPN
masked devices and imposing penalty not only on the offenders but also for the people who are involved
in piracy.

Many countries have taken many measures to ensure the safety of their artists by preventing the people
from supporting piracy thus maintains the music industry in a very harmonious way. It also increases the
change to encounter a young talent who can be a trendsetter of the era and many young talents will be
ready to try and be glorious in their life by selecting the one career which they loves. Increase in piracy
will increase the risk of these talents from showcasing their talent to the world.
Concept Copyright Infringement Plagiarism
Definition Unauthorized use of a copyrighted Using someone else's work or ideas as one's
work which is protected under own, without proper attribution or giving
copyright law credit to the original source
Type of Usually related to creative works such Can be any type of work, including written
work as music, books, software, text, images, or code, regardless of whether
photographs, etc. that are eligible for it is protected by copyright or not
copyright protection
Legal Illegal and punishable by law, including Considered unethical, but not necessarily
aspect monetary damages, injunctions, or illegal; may result in loss of credibility,
criminal penalties for copyright grade, or job opportunity, but not
infringement necessarily legal consequences
Protects Exclusive rights of the copyright Originality and credit of the author, giving
owner, such as the right to reproduce, them recognition and protection for their
distribute, and publicly perform the original work
work
Key factor Unauthorized use, meaning the use of Lack of proper attribution, meaning failing
the work without permission or to give credit to the original source or
authorization from the copyright presenting someone else's work as one's
owner own
Example Downloading a copyrighted movie Copying text from a source without giving
without permission from the owner or proper credit or citation to the original
authorized distributor author or source.

Key differences between Copyright Infringement and Plagiarism

1. Definition: Copyright Infringement is unauthorized use of protected material, while Plagiarism is

using someone else's work or ideas without proper attribution.

2. Legal protection: Copyright Infringement is a legal violation, while Plagiarism is not a criminal
offense.

3. Object of protection: Copyright Infringement deals with the unauthorized use of creative works
such as literature, music, and art, while Plagiarism deals with the unauthorized use of someone's
thoughts, ideas, and writing.

4. Consequence: Copyright Infringement can result in monetary damages and legal penalties, while
Plagiarism can result in loss of credibility, academic penalties, and damage to reputation.

5. Intent: Copyright Infringement requires no intention, while Plagiarism requires knowledge of the
source and intention to pass off someone else's work as one's own.

6. Remedy: Copyright Infringement can be remedied through cease and desist letters or court
orders, while Plagiarism can be remedied through proper citation or re-writing the offending
material.

Media and courts

The Media freedom is curtailed when it tends to insult the state under Sedition which is a crime under
I.P.C., if it results in loss of reputation of an individual i.e., defamation, and when it creates contempt of
judiciary i.e., the contempt of court.

Meaning:
Its simple literal meaning is disgrace, scorn or disobedience. Whereas in law it means an offence against
the dignity of a court or legislative body. The purpose of the contempt proceedings is to safeguard the
dignity of the court and the administration of justice.
Kinds of Contempt:

There are many kinds of contempt's. The chief forms of contempt are insults to judges, attacks upon
them, comment on pending proceedings with a tendency to prejudice fair trial, obstruction to officers of
courts, witnesses or the parties, abusing the process of the Court, breach of duty by officers connected
with the Court and scandalizing the judges or the Courts.
Definition:
Section 2(a) of Contempt of Court Act 1971 deals with civil contempt and criminal contempt. Section
2(b):'Civil Contempt' means willful disobedience to any judgment, decree, order or other process of a
Court of willful breach of an undertaking given to a Court.

Civil contempt consists of disobeying the orders and criminal contempt is obstructing the administration of
justice. There is some degree of overlap between these two kinds of contempt.

Section 2(c):

Criminal Contempt means the publication (whether by words, spoken or written by signs or by visible
representations or otherwise of any matter or the doing or any other act whatsoever which may:
Scandalizes or tends to scandalize or tends to lower authority of any court; or Prejudices, or interferes or
tends to interfere with, the due course of any judicial proceedings; or Interferes or tends to interfere with,
or obstructs or tends to obstruct the administration of justice in any other manner.

Criminal contempt is again of three kinds:

1. Contempt in the face of court, i.e., directly interfering with court proceedings;

2. Contempt in relation to specific, imminent or pending proceedings by doing something which

interferes with the due administration of justice;

3. Contempt by scandalizing the judges.

Media freedom and contempt of courts in India

There have been cases that deal with both Art. 19(2) and the Act. One such case was Smt. Archana
Guha v. Sri Ranjit Guha, wherein the dispute was based on an article published in a Calcutta
newspaper. It has to be noted that the criticism of a judgement was done by distorting the facts, but
the Calcutta HC held that there was no contempt because there ought to be freedom to criticise the
judiciary, even if done incorrectly. This case brought forth the important point that there should not be
any contempt case filed merely because a particular judgement had been misconstrued in the media.
An alternative remedy in the form of clearing the confusion with the Registrar of the Press has been
provided for the same.

Media houses – both print and TV channels – have been subject to contempt cases. The Privy
Council in the case of Debi Prasad Sharma and Ors. v. The King Emperor held that there was no
contempt committed by the editors and publishers of the Hindustan Times for there was no
obstruction to the administration of justice; rather, the article in the newspaper had criticised the
administrative capacity of the Allahabad Chief Justice, which cannot be construed as contempt. In the
case of Ashwini Kumar Ghose v. Arabinda Bose, the SC stated that the article published in Times of
India not only criticised a judgement of the Court, but went on to imply motives to the Judges.
Trial by media’ is a recently coined term and is used to d e n o t e
a f a c e t o f ‘ m e d i a a c t i v i s m . ’ I t m e a n s “ t h e i m p a c t o f t e l e v i s i o n a n d n e w s p a p e r coverage on
a person’s reputation by creating widespread perception of guilt regardless of any verdict in a Court of
law.
There is no legal system where the media is given the authority to try a case.
In India, trial by media has assumed significant proportions. There have been
n u m e r o u s instances in which media has been accused of conducting the trial of the accused and passingthe
‘verdict’ even before the court passes its judgment.
Many other cases like the Arushi Murder Case, Jessica Lal Murder Case,
Here are some of the examples:

1. Imputing dishonesty to a judge by stating that he controlled the hearing and manipulating in
getting erroneous Judgement from another judge of the same Bench: C.K.Daphtary Vs.
P.Gupta AIR 1971 SC 1132: ( 1971 ) 1 SCC 626.

2. Publishing scandalous matter respecting the court after adjudication calculated to lower the
authority of the court and sense of confidence of the people in the administration of
justice: B.K.Lala v R.C.Dutt AIR 1967 Cal 153: 1967 Cr LJ 350.

3. Allegation that 'justice is sold' or 'justice is auctioned' Umed v. Bahadur Singh 1981 Cr LJ NOC
85 (Raj).

4. To say that a judge is a prejudiced judge: B.K.Lala v R.C.Dutt AIR 1967 Cal 153: 1967 Cr LJ
350.

5. Reply to a show-cause notice stating that the respondent's experience of court affairs in India is
worse and that instead of finding his fault, the court should try to find whether it adopted an
'abnormal' course of justice: State v Ram Dass AIR 1969 Cr LJ 1380.

6. Notice Imputing malice, partially and dishonesty to the judge: Rachapudi v Advocate General
AIR 1981 S 755: (1981)2 SSC 577: 1981 Cr Lj 315.

7. An attack on a judge ascribing to him favouritism in his judicial or official capacity: Mohd.Vamin v
Om Prakash 1982 Cr LJ 322 (Raj).

8. Newspaper article proceeding inter alla to attribute improper motives to the judges, having a clear
tendency to affect the prestige and dignity of the court: Aswini Kumar Ghosh v Arabinda
Bose AIR 1953 SC 75: 1953 Cr LJ 519.

Punishment:
Sec 2 of The Contempt of Court Act of 1971 punishes the guilty with imprisonment that may extend
to six months or fine of Rs 2,000 or both.
1. It was amended in 2006 to include “truth and good faith” as a defence.
 2. It was added that the court may impose punishments only if the act of the
other person substantially interferes, or tends to interfere with the due course
of justice.

procedure
The summary procedure for criminal courts dealing with criminal contempt is set out at Rule 48.5 CrimPR.
The court explains the conduct and sets out the court’s powers, allows the respondent an opportunity to
apologise, and decides whether to take no further action or in the alternative to enquire into the conduct
there and then. The Crown Court can postpone the enquiry to another day and arrange for statements to
be provided. However that enquiry must be done on the same day in the magistrates’ court, although the
enquiry can be put back until later in the day.

Can the media cover everything about a court proceeding?

Broadly, the media does have the right to publish details of a court proceeding, stemming from its right to
freedom of speech and expression under Article 19(1) of the Indian Constitution. This was also endorsed
by the precept of “promotion of full, fair and accurate reporting of court proceedings” as held by the
Supreme Court in Swapnil Tripathi v. Supreme Court of India (2018).

However, in line with the limitations imposed on free speech by Article 19(2), the Court can forbid the
media from reporting on certain aspects of a case pending before a court. For instance, in criminal cases
involving sexual crimes, especially child sexual abuse, the law strictly prohibits publication of any
sensitive information. Moreover, in cases of “in-camera proceedings” where the proceedings are not open
to the public, no information can be shared outside the courtroom. In Romila Thapar v. Union of India
(2018), the Supreme Court directed law enforcement authorities to not reveal any details about the
parties involved until the trial is completed. This effectively means that the media can report freely on all
court proceedings unless there are expressed restrictions.

So what can the media report on?

Materials presented or conversations held before a court of law qualify as “public documents” according
to section 74 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872. Therefore the public has the right to access such
information. Hence, an uninhibited reporting of court proceedings is both the right and duty of the media.
Transparency of court proceedings is the norm. In fact, all judgements delivered by the Supreme Court
have to be in an open court, according to Article 145 (4) of the Indian Constitution. However, there are
exceptions to this norm.

And they are…

As mentioned before, in cases where there is already a statutory embargo or an injunction from reporting,
for example, POCSO and rape cases, media reporting of specific aspects is not allowed. However, there
is no overarching list of the type of cases or categories of information that the media cannot report on.
Having said that, courts have time and again restricted media reporting if it threatens to interfere with the
“administration of justice” or jeopardizes the right to life of the concerned parties or the right to a fair trial
of the accused.

The need to balance accountability with freedom of the press

The responsibility of ethical and accurate reporting lies with the media. The former Chief Justice of India,
N.V Ramana had regretted the lack of accountability of the media in reporting of legal issues in the
context of journalist Mohammad Zubair’s arrest. In the 2012 case of Sahara v. SEBI, it was prayed before
the Supreme Court that guidelines on media reporting of cases be framed. This was again echoed by the
Karnataka High Court in the H Nagabhushan Rao v. Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (2021)
case.

While we have seen the perils of media overreach on numerous occasions, preemptive restrictions on the
media goes against the “soul of justice”. In fact, in the Sahara case, the Supreme Court refrained from
framing any guidelines on media reporting across the board upholding the value of open justice.

What can be done in case of unauthorized reporting or misreporting by the media?

The Supreme Court in the Sahara case listed down certain constitutional principles according to which
publication of certain court proceedings may be postponed if the court felt that reporting of such cases
can adversely impact the process of justice. The order of postponement will only be passed if it can be
proven that such an order is both proportionate and necessary. Besides, anyone who is affected by
misreporting by the media can seek legal remedies under the provisions of the defamation laws as well
as other constitutional remedies like violation of the right to privacy or the right to life under Article 21 of
the Indian constitution.

Commercial Speech
Commercial speech refers to when corporations speak to potential consumers about products and
services.
Commercial speech is speech that suggests a commercial transaction or is an expression entirely related
to the economic interest of the speaker and his listener or audience.

Hamdard Dawakhana v. Union of India, advertising as a type of commercial communication is ineligible

for protection under Article 19(1)(a) since they include trade and commerce, undermining the objective of
spreading social ideas and beliefs. These advertisements were similar to people's business goals and
were therefore not protected by Article 19(1)(a).
Tata Press Ltd. v. Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. Further, the Supreme Court also held that
misleading and deceptive advertising would not fall within the protection of Article 19. Furthermore, the
Supreme Court held that Article 19's protections would not cover deceptive and misleading advertising.
Article 19 as it is subject to reasonable res striction. So, the ruling of the Supreme Court in the Tata Press
case was like listing reasonable restrictions to commercial speech for being considered under the ambit of
Article 19. The ruling in the Tata Press Ltd case did not exclude commercial speech from the ambit of
Article 19 but recognized it as a fundamental right with reasonable restrictions under Article 19(2). The
limitations under article 19(2) lay down that the freedoms envisaged in Article 19 can be restricted
provided that they are122 based on the authority of law and reason.
Express Newspaper v. Union of India, that the Supreme Court established that commercial speech is
protected under the ambit of free speech and expression under Article 19. The Supreme Court stated,
"We are of the view that all commercial advertisements cannot be denied the protection of Article 19(1)(a)
of the Constitution merely because businessmen issue them and its true character is detected by the
object for the promotion of which it is employed."

Unsolicited Commercial Communications ( UCCs ) Commercial Speech

UCCs are essentially a form of telemarketing that can take the form of automated messages, calls or emails. On
considering this question, the Delhi High Court found that UCCs are essentially commercial advertisement but they
are meant for furtherance of trade and commerce and hence, would not prima facie amount to freedom of speech
under Article 19(1)(a). However, the court was quick to observe that even if UCCs were classified as commercial
speech under Article 19(1)(a), they would be subject to the limitations imposed upon them by Article 19(2) and
regulating the number of UCCs was permissible.

The constitution itself lays down in Art 19 (2) the restrictions which can be imposed on fundamental rights
guaranteed under Art 19(1)(a) of the constitution. The commercial speech which is deceptive, unfair,
misleading and untruthful would be hit by Art 19 (2) of the constitution and can be regulated and
prohibited by the State.

Development of Doctrine of commercial speech

The development of the doctrine has been studied significantly in America. The categorization of speech as
commercial was first seen in Valentine v. Chrestensen, in a ruling that was later criticized for being casual and
offhand , the court held that commercial advertising was ineligible for First Amendment consideration. This ruling
was later referred to in the matter of Hamdard Dawakhana v. Union of India, where a statute restricting
objectionable and unethical advertisements with respect to drugs was challenged; the court found that an
advertisement in the interest of trade and commerce cannot be protected under Article 19(1)(a).
The doctrine of commercial speech evolved from a mere intuition of economic policies to a component of speech
that potentially carries ideas of substantial interest. The doctrine has been treated with utmost caution which can
be inferred from the dearth of a reasonably clear definition, to a pattern of mighty hesitation in exploring various
facets of this form of speech, to granting it a legal status worthy of protection.

Reporters privilege
The idea behind reporter’s privilege is that journalists have a limited First Amendment right not to be forced to
reveal information or confidential news sources in court.

Journalists rely on confidential sources to write stories that deal with matters of legitimate public importance. Many
reporters believe that the First Amendment provides them protection from testifying before a grand jury regarding
their sources and prize their role as “neutral watchdogs and objective observers.”
First, many states have recognized a reporter’s privilege under state law. New York’s highest court, for example, has
recognized a qualified privilege based on its state constitution — protecting both confidential and nonconfidential
materials.

Second, in other states, a reporter’s privilege is based on common law. For example, the Supreme Court of
Washington state recognized a qualified privilege in civil cases initially and later in criminal cases.

In a third option, courts in some states, among them New Mexico, can create their own rules of procedure.