Editors Guild voices concern over Karnataka govt decision to set up fact-check unit

The Editors Guild of India on Sunday voiced concerns over the decision of the Karnataka government to set up a fact-checking unit to monitor "fake news" on social media platforms.

The Guild insisted that efforts to check such content have to be by independent bodies that are not under the sole purview of the government lest they become tools to clamp down on voices of dissent.

Any such monitoring framework should follow principles of natural justice, including giving prior notice, right to appeal and judicial oversight, the Guild said in a statement here.

It said such fact-checking units should also be set up with due consultation and involvement of all stakeholders, including journalists and media bodies, so that press freedom is not tampered with.

The Guild has already filed a petition in the Bombay High Court, challenging the amendments to the IT Rules 2023 that allow the setting up of a 'fact-checking unit' under which the executive will have the sole authority to determine what is fake and the powers to order content take-down.

Karnataka's IT & BT Minister Priyank Kharge recently said that "posts and reports that are tagged as fake by the fact-checking unit will be taken down," and "if required, the government can also take penal measures under relevant provisions of the IPC".