Social Media Platforms Present Voluntary Code of Ethics

Social media platforms and the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) presented a ‘Voluntary Code of Ethics for the General Election 2019 to the Election Commission of India.

Voluntary Code of Ethics

• The code aims to identify measures that the platforms can take to increase confidence in the electoral process to safeguard against misuse that vitiates the free and fair character.
• The platforms will deploy appropriate policies and processes to facilitate access to information on electoral matters where appropriate and keeping in mind the principle of freedom of expression.
• The platforms have voluntarily undertaken to establish a high-priority communication channel with the nodal officers designated by the ECI.
• The Election commission together with platforms has developed a notification mechanism by which the electoral body can notify them of potential violations under Section 126 of the Representation of the People Act and on other matters.
• As per the code, the platforms will acknowledge these notifications within three hours of receipt and will act upon expeditiously based on the nature of the reported violation.
• The platforms will deploy a high-priority dedicated reporting mechanism for the EC and appoint dedicated persons for the purpose.
• Platforms will ensure that political advertisements by parties or their candidates are pre-certified.

Participants including BIGO, ByteDance, Facebook, Google, Sharechat and Twitter have agreed to take action on the content reported by the nodal officer, expeditiously, in accordance with the law.

Month: Current Affairs - March, 2019