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Stop talking to media without permission — Prasar Bharati tells employees for the 3rd time

Fresh missive was issued on 3 December after similar orders in November 2019 and February 2020. Prasar Bharati said it had taken lapses ‘very seriously’.

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New Delhi: Prasar Bharati, the parent body of state-owned broadcasters Doordarshan (DD) and All India Radio (AIR), has issued yet another order barring officials from interacting with the media without its permission, stating that lapses to this effect have been viewed “very seriously”.

The fresh missive was issued on 3 December, after two similar orders issued in November 2019 and then on 11 February this year.

The new order, accessed by ThePrint, states that it has been brought to the notice of the Prasar Bharati Secretariat that various officers and employees of AIR and DD are briefing and interacting with the press and media on issues concerning the organisation.

“Prasar Bharati had earlier issued clear directions (that) no briefing to the press and media be given by the officers of DD/AIR without permission from the competent authority. This lapse has been viewed very seriously,” the order said.

“In cases where briefings are required, such cases may be addressed to ADG (Marketing), PB Secretariat, in advance and prior approval may be taken before giving such briefings.”

A Prasar Bharati official told ThePrint this order was issued again after some instances had come to light where AIR and DD staff issued statements to the media without taking due approval.

“This was specific to on-record instances that have come to light,” the official said.

A second official from the organisation said the leakage of information to the media pertaining to some of Prasar Bharati’s latest decisions, such as rationalisation of radio transmitters, could have triggered the move.

ThePrint reached Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati for a comment through WhatsApp, but there was no response till the time of publication of this report.


Also read: AIR set to undergo major structural revamp as it looks to cut costs & be ‘competitive’


‘Like any corporate’

In December last year, days after Prasar Bharati had issued the first order, Vempati had told ThePrint that in any corporate house, communication has to be streamlined and has to follow a proper corporate policy. “The advisory issued is part of that; there is nothing unusual about it,” he had said.

Vempati had also tweeted about the matter, saying authorised corporate spokespersons will speak, like in any modern functioning media corporation, after taking due approval.

However, a senior DD official said the state broadcasters are not like any other corporates, and have stations at the district and sub-district levels, so issues and objectives differ from place to place.

“Communication with the locals and the local media is important at such levels, and it is the quickness of response which matters at the time. If you are to wait for a centralised approval from Delhi at such times, the entire purpose is defeated,” the DD official said.


Also read: Editors Guild says govts & agencies acted ‘vindictively’ in Prasar Bharati-PTI, Odisha matters


 

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