In a recent meeting in Brussels, national broadcasting regulators have agreed to initiate appropriate measures to stop broadcasts which fuel incitement and hatred among the members of the public. Information exchange and cooperation among the national broadcasters have been identified as the key areas of action to prevent such broadcasts.
Recent cases of Al Manar and Sahar 1, two channels, which have recently been prohibited by the French authorities for airing inciting programmes, point to the need to combat racial hatred in a concerted manner.
Also, it is felt that the modernization of the “Television without Frontiers”, the flagship EU Directive that establishes the legal frame of reference for the free movement of television broadcasting services in the Union, shall incorporate the views emerged in the Brussels meet. Article 22a of this 1989 Directive, however, prohibits incitement to hatred on grounds of race, sex, religion or nationality.
As a countermeasure, regulators from the 25 EU Member States have proposed interconnecting their channel authorization databases or even setting up a central database as an interim strategy. In the long run the brodacsters will be required to exchange information via the national contact points.
More: EUROPA.
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