If you are a YouTuber involved in giving news to the public through such a platform you are bound to get yourself registered.
The Information and Public Relations Department has today issued a notification mandating that all individuals and organisations involved in disseminating news on social media platforms within Meghalaya must register with the department.
This move, part of the Meghalaya Public Communication Policy 2024, aims to promote responsible online news reporting.
Under the new directive, those not accredited or empanelled with the Directorate of Information and Public Relations (DIPR) must submit their details to the department. Registration can be completed in person at the DIPR office or via email.
In the notification, the DIPR said the move is part of the Meghalaya Public Communication Policy 2024 requiring individuals and organisations to register with the DIPR before sharing news on social media platforms.
The policy warns that failure to register before disseminating news on social media within Meghalaya will be considered a violation, potentially leading to legal action.
The notification said that the steps aimed to ensure that no individual posts content that is against the interests of the State, public order, decency, morality, or involves defamation of any institution or individual, or that is likely to incite the commission of any offence.
While the notification is aimed at regulating private individuals who used social media platforms such as YouTube and others to present news and current affairs which has the potential of spreading wrong information to the public, the only concern expressed by many observers is the wording in the notification which stated that no individual should posts “content that is against the interests of the State”.
As it is today, all media houses in the State including print, electronic and digital media have to empanel themselves with the DIPR. An empanelment committee comprising officials of the DIPR and senior functionaries of media organisations scrutinises the genuineness of a media house before allowing it to be empanelled.
