Press Freedom expenses India 161 out of 180 primarily based totally on faulty data on govt spending on commercials, claims it spent 13,000 cr on commercials: Here is what OpIndia RTI had found

On May 3, Reporters sans frontières (Reporters Without Borders), or RSF, launched its annual Press Freedom Report, whereby it put India at 161st place out of 180 worldwide places. As per RSF, India slipped 11 ranks since 2022. Interestingly, in response to RSF, Pakistan’s press freedom index has improved. From 157th rank in 2022, Pakistan has acquired the 100 and fiftieth place inside the itemizing. The similar goes for Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, which acquired its rank improved from 156 to 152.

RSF claimed Indian authorities spends 130 billion Rupees on commercials yearly

One of basically essentially the most bizarre components RSF put in its report is regarding the money the federal authorities of India spends on commercials. RSF claimed the central authorities is spending higher than 130 billion rupees (Rs 13,000 crores) or 5 billion euros a 12 months on commercials inside the print and on-line media alone.

Under the ‘Economic Context’, the report study, “The Indian press is a colossus with feet of clay. Despite often huge stock market valuations, media outlets largely depend on advertising contracts with local and regional governments. In the absence of an airtight border between business and editorial policy, media executives often see the latter as just a variable to be adjusted according to business needs. At the national level, the central government has seen that it can exploit this to impose its own narrative. It is now spending more than 130 billion rupees (5 billion euros) a year on print and online media ads alone. Recent years have also seen the rise of “Godi media” (a play on Modi’s determine and lapdogs) – media retailers corresponding to Times Now and Republic TV that mix populism and pro-BJP propaganda. The earlier Indian model of a pluralist press is, subsequently, being severely challenged by a mixture of harassment and have an effect on.”

OpIndia had filed an RTI on the lookout for data on the advert spent by the central authorities on utterly completely different platforms, along with print, outside commercials, social media, radio and television. As per the reply despatched by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India, the exact figures are nowhere close to what RSF has claimed.

According to the reply despatched by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the central authorities spent solely Rs 26.44 crore on television commercials and only one.33 crore on social media commercials inside the financial 12 months 2022-23. Notably, advert spending has decreased significantly given that Modi authorities acquired right here to power in 2014. The most amount the federal authorities has spent on television commercials was Rs 280.77 crores in FY 2016-17.

Here is a breakdown of year-wise money spent on television commercials

FY 2014-15 – 236.68 crores
FY 2015-16 – 245.42 crores
FY 2016-17 – 280.77 crores
FY 2017-18 – 153.03 crores
FY 2018-19 – 149.67 crores
FY 2019-20 – 98.69 crores
FY 2020-21 – 69.82 crores
FY 2021-22 – 29.44 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – 26.44 crores

Source: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by way of RTI

Here is a breakdown 12 months wise money spent on completely different digital media (digital cinema, net, misc and sms)

FY 2014-15 – 103.83 crores
FY 2015-16 – 132.31 crores
FY 2016-17 – 96.87 crores
FY 2017-18 – 102.98 crores
FY 2018-19 – 115.35 crores
FY 2019-20 – 86.49 crores
FY 2020-21 – 16.16 crores
FY 2021-22 – 6.98 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – 13.91 crores

Here is a breakdown 12 months wise money spent on Radio commercials

FY 2014-15 – 81.43 crores
FY 2015-16 – 113.31 crores
FY 2016-17 – 184.40 crores
FY 2017-18 – 167.89 crores
FY 2018-19 – 209.15 crores
FY 2019-20 – 73.46 crores
FY 2020-21 – 68.44 crores
FY 2021-22 – 33.34 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – 16.97 crores

Source: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by way of RTI

Here is a breakdown 12 months wise money spent on outside commercials

FY 2014-15 – 62.72 crores
FY 2015-16 – 105.53 crores
FY 2016-17 – 126.45 crores
FY 2017-18 – 145.69 crores
FY 2018-19 – 189.13 crores
FY 2019-20 – 7.5 crores
FY 2020-21 – 1.16 crores
FY 2021-22 – 7.79 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – Data not on the market

Source: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by way of RTI

Here is a breakdown 12 months wise money spent on print media

FY 2014-15 – 207.66 crores
FY 2015-16 – 317.87 crores
FY 2016-17 – 272.84 crores
FY 2017-18 – 411.03 crores
FY 2018-19 – 252.28 crores
FY 2019-20 – 81.93 crores
FY 2020-21 – 53.76 crores
FY 2021-22 – 58.50 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – 69.26 crores

Source: Ministry of Information and Broadcasting by way of RTI

Year-wise entire expenditure on commercials by the central authorities (all departments and ministries in all codecs)

FY 2014-15 – 692.32 crores
FY 2015-16 – 914.44 crores
FY 2016-17 – 961.33 crores
FY 2017-18 – 980.62 crores
FY 2018-19 – 915.58 crores
FY 2019-20 – 348.07 crores
FY 2020-21 – 209.34 crores
FY 2021-22 – 136.05 crores
FY 2022-23 (till December 31, 2022) – 126.58 crores

While RSF claimed the federal authorities of India spent Rs 13,000 crores on commercials merely in print and on-line media alone, the RTI reply confirmed the expenditure did not even cross Rs 1,000 crores per 12 months on all codecs (television, print, radio, outside, digital cinema, SMS, net and misc) given that Modi authorities acquired right here to power.

OpIndia is engaged on an in depth report on advert spending given that Modi authorities acquired right here to power in 2014.

Other unsubstantial claims made by RSF

Throughout its report on India, RSF made plenty of claims which have been nowhere close to actuality. RSF claimed Reliance Industries Group led by Mukesh Ambani owns higher than 70 media retailers. They moreover recognized good relations between Ambani and PM Modi. The declare would not stand sturdy because it’s primarily based totally on a 2019 assertion by Mukesh Ambani the place he had talked about Reliance Industries owned 72 television channels, which contains all genres of channels and by no means merely data channels, with spherical 800 million viewers.

Source: RIL

This incorporates News18 branded TV data platforms like CNN Worldwide, CNN-News18, CNBC-TV18, CNN-IBN, CNBC Awaaz and further. Other than data channels, it moreover incorporates an leisure portfolio beneath Viacom18 Media which is the dad or mum agency of fifty channels. All these are leisure channels and shouldn’t have any “media outlets” as talked about by RSF. Reliance’s Jio platform can be a provide of stories for its subscribers nonetheless that is additional of an aggregator pretty than proprietor of the channels or media outlet.

Misleading data on deaths of media people of Covid-19

RSF used data from utterly completely different years to say 1/3 of Covid-19-related deaths of media personnel have been from India. RSF linked a report of Dhaka Tribune from June 2021 that well-known 1,500 media people died of Covid worldwide. Dhaka Tribune used data from Press Emblem Campaign.

Source: RSF

Then it linked to a doc maintained by the Network of Women in Media, India, that well-known over 500 media people died of Covid in India. The amount on that doc now stands at 626. Using these two data components, RSF in 2021 claimed that 1/third (33 per cent) of the deaths of media people by Covid-19 handed off in India. Using this report, RSF talked about, “Under the guise of combatting Covid-19, the government and its supporters have waged a guerrilla war of lawsuits against media outlets whose coverage of the pandemic contradicted official statements.”

Source: RSF

RSF did not exchange itself in terms of data. When we checked, it was found that PEC well-known till March 2022 that 1,994 media people died of Covid-19 and out of those, 284 have been from India.

Source: PEC

That means PEC claimed 14.24 per cent of Covid-19-related deaths of media people occurred in India which was decrease than half of what RSF claimed. PEC stopped gathering data after March 2022.

Source: PEC
Claims of unlawful arrests and mishandling of media people all through protests

RSF claimed the Indian authorities misbehaved and unlawfully arrested media people who lined farmer protests. Interestingly, they talked concerning the time when Twitter handles of media people have been suspended for sharing fake details about violence. They included the case of The Wire’s Siddharth Varadarajan was booked for reporting the lack of lifetime of a protester. Not to miss, even after repeated clarification from the Police and the doctor who did an autopsy of the deceased, Varadarajan continued to share fake experiences regarding the lack of lifetime of the protester. It must be well-known that The Wire was compelled to remove plenty of experiences related to Tek Fog and Meta as they’ve been primarily based totally on false proof. This report of RSF was revealed in 2021 and appeared inside the 2023 score.

Source: RSF

They moreover talked concerning the arrest of so-called journalist Siddique Kappan who was arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police for allegedly plans to instigate most of the people all through the Hathras case in 2020. Details revolving spherical Kappan may be study proper right here. RSF moreover linked a report the place it extended its assist to propaganda journalist Rana Ayyub. Notably, Ayyub is known for making false claims on worldwide platforms. She is accused of financial fraud. The case in opposition to her is sub-judice. Recently, she downplayed gangster Atiq Ahmed’s crimes at a UNESCO event.

They moreover linked an earlier report back to say the state of affairs is “still worrisome” in Kashmir. RSF linked to an article calling for the discharge of Kashmiri journalist Fahad Shah. Notably, he was arrested by NIA for glorifying terrorism. Charges have been framed in opposition to him in January 2023. He was moreover accused of Me Too. RSF awarded him for his “courage” in 2020. They moreover acquired right here out in assist of Irfan Mehraj, an alleged journalist from Kashmir who was arrested in a terror funding case.