Media outlets that steal content should be shut down: CA’s press secy

Media outlets that copy and paste content from other sources without permission should be shut down, said Chief Adviser's Press Secretary Shafiqul Alam.

Speaking at a discussion on media reform, he underscored the importance of enforcing copyright laws, saying, "A journalist may spend two months working on a story, and another news portal copies it in a second. A photographer might capture the most beautiful image in the world, and a major newspaper publishes it without permission. Media outlets that steal news from other sources must be closed down."

The remarks were made during a discussion titled "Media Reform Proposal: Citizens' Thoughts", today (17 January) at the Nasrul Hamid Auditorium of Dhaka Reporters Unity, under the banner "We Want a Fascism-Free Media".

Shafiqul criticised organisations such as the Press Council, Dhaka Reporters Unity, and Newspaper Owners' Association of Bangladesh (Noab) for not taking action against media outlets engaged in news theft.

 "These organisations should take action and shut them down. This theft is reducing your and my salaries," he said, highlighting the lack of copyright enforcement in the country, which leads to widespread content theft.

Shafiqul also pointed out the importance of investing in journalism. "If you want to do journalism, you have to spend money. You must pay journalists their salaries. The value of journalists' work is not that cheap," he remarked, urging media houses to prioritise fair wages.

Addressing journalists directly, Shafiqul compared their situation to that of workers in the garment sector, noting, "If workers in our garment sector can fight so strongly for their wages, why can't you? Regardless of which media outlet you run, you must retain good journalists and ensure a minimum wage for them."

Shafiqul also discussed the need for media reform in Bangladesh, criticising the authoritarian rule of former prime minister Sheikh Hasina's government over the past 15 years, which, he argued, had manipulated and controlled the media. "A single phone call from DGFI, NSI, or a minister was enough to control the media," he said, describing the ICT law as a tool for injustice rather than justice.

Shafiqul Alam raised doubts about whether the Nasrul Hamid Auditorium at Dhaka Reporters Unity was funded by the former state minister for power, energy, and mineral resources, Nasrul Hamid. He suggested that the Reporters Unity reconsider keeping this name.

At the event, Akbar Hossain, press minister at the UK Embassy and a senior journalist, said, "Since 5 August, we've been discussing many changes. We talk about setting minimum wages for media ownership, like in the garment sector. But how many media outlets follow this standard? The wage board we have only applies to newspapers."

He added, "Many talk about media freedom, but they don't care for their own reporters. They don't recognise the effort and hard work reporters put in to produce quality stories each week. Media houses need to be accountable. Mistakes happen, but deliberately acting with bad intent must be avoided.

"You cannot do activism in a media house and then claim there's no freedom. If you leave journalism to do activism and criticism, that's fine."

The event concluded with the presentation of 13 proposals aimed at improving the media landscape.

These proposals include ensuring press freedom, establishing ethics and professionalism in the media, forming an independent media commission, ensuring transparency in media ownership and financing, improving the recruitment process and job security for journalists, reforming the wage structure, amending the Cybersecurity Act, enacting laws for journalist protection, allocating funds for media in the budget, simplifying the media registration process, promoting regional and alternative media, ensuring the free flow of information, and increasing public participation.

The discussion was led by Joynal Abedin Shishir, the convener of the "We Want a Fascism-Free Media" campaign. Plabon Tariq, the organisation's spokesperson, moderated the session. Other speakers included lawyer Mollah Faruque Ahsan and Mahbub Alam, a lecturer at Uttara University.