Complaint on tickers showing Muslims harassing Hindu women: NBDSA mulls advisory for TV channels

A complaint from a Pune-based techie and activist, who flagged that Times Now Navbharat had broadcast narrative-building videos about the Shimla mosque issue last September—where the reporter attempted to link the mosque with an anticipated rise in the Muslim population, thereby instilling fear—has led the News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA) to consider issuing an advisory to all broadcasters.

The NBDSA intends in its advisory, following the complaint from activist Indrajeet Ghorpade, that all broadcasters should ensure tickers and thumbnails accurately reflect the content of discussions and interviews, as it found that several programmes fail to maintain this standard and instead present distorted versions.

Ghorpade alleged that Times Now Navbharat had adopted a communal tone in its coverage of the Shimla mosque demolition and had uploaded nearly 150 videos on the topic within 48 hours.

The complainant pointed out that the channel’s broadcast included a reporter questioning four Hindu women in the area using leading questions that sought to establish a link between the mosque and a perceived rise in the Muslim population, which the complainant argued was an attempt to instil fear and reinforce a communal narrative.

The NBDSA, after reviewing the broadcast, observed that the thumbnail used for one such video included text that falsely suggested Muslim men were harassing women, even though the women interviewed had not made such claims during the discussion.

The authority concluded that the thumbnail was misleading and not aligned with the actual statements made, thereby violating the guidelines that mandate fair and responsible reporting, especially on sensitive communal matters.

While the NBDSA directed Times Now Navbharat to make appropriate edits to the misleading thumbnail, it also acknowledged a broader trend of carelessness in how tickers and thumbnails are designed across multiple broadcasters.