The federal government is going to merge all the media regulatory authorities, including electronic and print media, into one.
The cabinet, on Thursday, approved the merger. The new body will be called the Pakistan Media Regulatory Authority (PMRA).
The development means that the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) and the Press Council of Pakistan (PCP) will be clubbed together to form PMRA.
Fawad Chaudhry, the Federal Information Minister, announced that “not only the electronic media but also print and ‘cyber media’ would come under the umbrella of PMRA.”
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He said the decision was taken because the government feels there should be one regulatory body to look after all the media.
He rejected the notion that the PTI-led government wants to put electronic media in crisis by decreasing the rates of advertisements, and said the prices were highly exaggerated during PML-N’s government which cost billions to the exchequer.
The minister also mentioned that the government would take representatives from the opposition and all the bodies representing journalists while laying down the rules for the new media watchdog.
Via: Dawn
