Synopsis
The government is proposing changes to content blocking rules. Users and internet intermediaries may soon get a chance to present their case in hearings. This aims to give online users a clearer opportunity to argue when their content is blocked. The move follows recent stakeholder consultations and draft amendments to IT rules.Operating under the MIB, the committee hears appeals regarding content blocking orders that remain unresolved by publishers or self-regulatory bodies. Till now, only registered news publishers were involved in IDC hearings, which operate as a level III oversight mechanism under the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021. "In recent stakeholder consultations, some intermediaries have requested us to ensure the user is given a clear chance to represent and explain their rationale behind posting flagged content, if they choose to do so. It's part of continuous efforts to make government processes more accessible," an official said.
While the IT rules allows a tiered grievance appellate mechanism, it has been called inadequate by regular online users whose posts are taken down, officials indicated. "This had been a problem for social media intermediaries earlier as well. Often, it is easier for them to deal with (blocking) orders if the user themselves does the needful," the official added. However, this latest move by MeitY has been necessitated by draft amendments to the IT rules, released last month. Under this, user posted online news content may face the same scrutiny and treatment as those in place for publishers under the new provisions.
Till now, Part III of the IT rules recognised publishers of 'news and current affairs content', and publishers of 'online curated content' as entities to whom the code of ethics and procedure and safeguards in relation to digital media applied. This has now been amended to list all intermediaries, and all news and current content hosted by them online. As a result, existing IDCs that have the power to block content by publishers may now have its mandate extended to news content put online by any user.
