This article is written by Anish of BALLB Hon’s of 3rd Year of PUSSGRC Hoshiapur (Panjab University), an intern under Legal Vidhiya
ABSTRACT
There are four pillars of the democracy and social media is one of them. Paid news presents an ever-growing danger to democracy. This occurs when the media puts out sponsored political content masquerading as independent news; the advertisements typically appear during elections and fail to disclose the financial support for the advertisement. Paid news is very dangerous for democracy because it leads people towards fake news and also decrease the ability to fair voting. The Election Commission of India and representation of People Act, 1951 presents guidelines for controlling paid news; however, ineffective compliance and the absence of specific legal mechanisms and definitions limit its effectiveness. The Press Council of India has some guidelines, but there should be strict laws, regulations, and codes of conduct. We must protect democracy from media funding, accountability of disclosure requirements obligations, and consequences for media managers who act unethically in their media businesses.
KEYWORDS
Paid News, Public Opinion, Election Commission of India, Regulatory frameworks, Democracy, Media Ethics, Press Council of India, Representation of the People Act, 1951
INTRODUCTION
The issue of paid news and endorsements in the constantly changing environment of media and politics continues to be concerning, especially when wrapped up in the paid news context. For the purpose of this letter, it may be useful to highlight the differences between advertisement and news reporting, the more serious issue being when one takes into account the idea of paid news being when individuals or political groups pay media outlets to show promotional content while disguising it as objective reporting. This confuses the public, giving the impression they are reading or listening to legitimate news reporting, which is an advertisement made on behalf of an agenda possibly hidden by the donor. Paid news exists in the context of the media relationships and is damaging because the audiences are not provided with an understanding of what a paid news advertisement is.
The practice of paid news becomes particularly troublesome during elections, especially at the local and state level. By using paid news effectively, paid news can unfairly sway public opinion in the minds of many voters. The Election Commission of India has made efforts to catch paid news and discourage its use, but the laws relating to paid news are ambiguous at best, and the consequences are weak.
A reliance on various legal remedies, such as the Representation of the People Act, 1951, and recommended guidelines from the Press Council of India, offers some space for resolution. However, new regulations with effective implementation are imperative and vital to keep the democratic exercise valid. In all cases of paid ads and endorsements, the need for consumer awareness of what they are consuming also involves full disclosure. We also aspire towards greater accountability from the media system.
Regulating paid news and endorsements, while a legal issue, is essentially about maintaining fair elections, improving good governance, and building trust with the public regarding what they see and hear.
LEGAL ISSUES IN PAID NEWS
NO LEGAL CLEAR DEFINITION
In India, some confusion currently persists regarding the concept of what constitutes paid news and, more specifically, about political endorsements. This ambiguity exists because we do not have a defined statutory definition of paid news and its regulation, and that, in many instances, “paid news,” is indistinguishable from journalism. Paid news, representation of a political party’s or candidate’s views, can be officially funded as advertising, which is regulated. Paired down to essentials, an advertisement with unregulated political views and opinions captures the imagination and belief of the reader when it matters most, during election time. The uncertainty around what constitutes paid news also risks the possibility of voter misinformation or even worse, risk the integrity of elections. As such, there are serious concerns brought to light for the need to be able to regulate paid news, give clearer recommendations on transparency in advertising, and to provide a compliant ethical path for the electorate to base their vote on accepted and verifiable information. In finally being published as an article rather than advertising, the public is not only misled, which is unfortunate, but it is also distracted from the important information, and further led to being clearly misunderstood about the political candidates as plausible influences on their vote. This kind of distortion is not only damaging to the democratic process in India, it creates disillusionment with voting, and impairs the level of trust voters have in elections and their outcome. In order to contextualize the complicated nature of paid news, it will require collaboration among regulators, media platforms, and civil society through accountability measures, and respect for fair competition in the political arena. Even though the Press Council of India, and the Election Commission of India are aware, and have been publicly exposed, we see that these matters are not given much in the way of strong statutory laws, for example, the Representation of the Peoples Act has no definition or clearly articulated strategy for dealing with paid news. This lack of clarity in the legal approach makes it significantly more difficult to monitor, whether the media be traditional or new, report on paid news, or punish violators. Paid news is one of reason behind making elections unfair and creates uncertainty amongst the public about the media. The remedy in that instance is for India to propose legislation defining what paid news is and to develop and promote a transparent, democratic culture.
WHAT IS “PAID NEWS”??
The Press Council of India defines it as “any news or analysis appearing in any media (print or electronic) for a price in cash or kind as consideration”
The Representation of the People Act, 1951 does not provide any statutory definition.
VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 19 (1) (a): RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSION
Paid news or political sponsorship and endorsement masquerading as journalism disregards the public’s right to know by fabricating “sponsored content” in the form of independently based journalism, which misleads voters and distorts democratic dialogue. This violation erodes the foundation of informed electoral choice making and undermines media integrity and legitimacy. The Supreme Court has declared voters have a right to know under Article 19(1)(a), and, therefore, transparency in political communication is necessary. When the media fails to identify paid news, it is violating the constitutional right of the public to know while simultaneously weakening both electoral integrity and press freedom.
THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE ACT, 1951
- SECTION 77: ACCOUNT OF ELECTION EXPENSES AND MAXIMUM THEREOF
During elections, it is a responsibility for all candidates to maintain a straightforward and honest account of the money they spend on their campaign. Their expenditures include, but are perhaps not limited to, rallies, poster campaigns, advertisements, and media coverage of their campaign (paid candidate-related media coverage or problematic paid news.) If a candidate pays for news coverage of some kind for their campaign account to see if the media will cover the candidate, but they do not indicate the cost on their official expense report as officially done, then it is cheating by concealing facts (the actual totals of money spent) that affect the limits set by the Election Commission, and in that way, it is unfair. As for election rules, it is also a method of corruption that gives an unfair advantage and misleads voters. Thus, when considering the whole process of renting media time to get campaign exposure in local news, there is nothing wrong with what it does, even if it has its limitations on spending (which could be zero or limited time), referring back to the summary of paid news coverage at the same time.
- SECTION 123(4): CORRUPT PRACTICES
Disseminating false information regarding a candidate’s character, especially when it is misrepresented as real news, is a “corrupt practice” according to election law. False information misleading voters, unfairly tarnishing reputations, and creating an out-of-control public impression of a candidate undermines the fabric of elections and violates key principles of elections, including transparency, honesty, and fair democratic competition.
- SECTION 10A: DISQUALIFICATION FOR FAILURE TO LODGE ACCOUNT OF ELECTION EXPENSES
Section 10A of the Representation of the People Act-1951 allows the Election Commission to disqualify candidates and elected representatives for up to three years in circumstances where truthful election expense reports are not submitted. Fortunately, follow-through is poor, not least because “paid news” has no legal definition, and no direct links to finances and intent are often able to be proved.
Landmark Case: Ashok Chavan v. Madhav Kinhalkar (2014) and Union of India v. ADR (2002)
THE PRESS COUNCIL OF INDIA ACT, 1978
It was established to uphold journalistic quality and promote media freedom. The PCI has the power to look into complaints and criticize media outlets for their immoral reporting, but it cannot impose punishments or execute rulings on them. Its role is mostly advisory and moral, not legal. The PCI provides guidelines and norms to the press for journalistic conduct, but these are not legally binding. This restriction was made to tackle problems like paid news, as it cannot force compliance or punish violations beyond public criticism or disapproval.
CABLE TELEVISION NETWORKS (REGULATION ACT, 1995)
The Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act, 1995, was passed to control cable TV content and guarantee ethical broadcasting. Unless they are plainly marked and pre-certified by the Election Commission, it bans political advertisements on television. Presenting political material as ordinary news without disclosure, commonly referred to as “paid news,” violates the Act. These covert campaigns deceive voters and jeopardize electoral justice. Though enforcement obstacles persist, the act allows authorities to punish cable operators who violate these restrictions. During elections, this legal protection seeks to preserve openness in political communication and protect viewers’ rights.
IT RULES, 2021
According to the Information Technology Rules, 2021, it is mandatory for digital publishers to mark sponsored content so that readers are not misled into thinking that advertisements are authentic news articles.
This openness promotes political discussion. Further call for rules for a complaint resolution system under which users can report content that is deceptive or immoral, including political endorsements covert as news. A three-tier structure ensures accountability: publisher self-regulation, industry group oversight, and governmental review. These rules aim to defend user rights and advance democratic honesty in the digital media landscape.
LEGAL ISSUES IN POLITICAL ENDORSEMENTS
PRE-CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENT
The Election Commission of India issued the guidelines that all political advertisements must be pre-certified before being published by the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee (MCMC). This was done according to electoral laws to avoid hate speech or misinformation and maintain fairness and transparency during election campaigns across media platforms.
DISCLOSURE OBLIGATIONS
There are some guidelines issued under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and CCPA, which say that influencers and media must clearly disclose any material connection while supporting products and services, such as payments, gifts, or brand partnerships. This ensures transparency, prevents misleading advertisements, and protects consumer trust by making promotional content easily distinguishable from genuine, unbiased opinions.
MIUSE OF GOVERNMENT RESOURCES
According to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC), using public funds or government platforms for political endorsements is strictly prohibited. It ensures to prevent the ruling parties from gaining an unfair advantage. The violation of using official events, advertisements, or resources for campaigning leads to legal action or disqualification by the Election Commission.
SOCIAL MEDIA LOOPHOLES
India does not have a clear legal structure outlining how to regulate digital endorsements across many types of platforms. The failure of having such a legal framework has undermined any expectation of consistency of disclosure and accountability. As a result, influencers and political advertisers will likewise readily exploit the absence of disclosure in this current climate especially when combined with microtargeting, i.e., political messages using personal data for tailored voter manipulation, which raises serious implications for privacy and voter manipulation. This is complicated by algorithmic bias. Algorithmic bias is when AI or machine-learning systems favor or exclude certain members of society. Bad actors can average and curate a range of behaviors in this environment that shed electoral integrity, entrench past discrimination, and actively undermine basic constitutional rights such as the right to equality and the right to receive sufficient information to make a rational choice as an elector.
ELECTION COMMISSION GUIDELINES
The Election Commission makes sure that media access for all political parties is equitable, thus supporting their access to campaign equally. They do not permit surrogate advertising, which is when a prohibited message is communicated in an indirect manner. It is a violation of the rules if any one party is favored over the other or if political advertising is in any way disguised; the candidate may be disqualified or, more seriously, face consequences through criminal offense under election laws.
INFLUENCERS LIABILITY
The CCPA Guidelines state that influencers who promote deceptive or undisclosed endorsements can be fined ₹10 lakhs for a first violation ($4,500 USD) and ₹50 lakhs for repeat violations ($7,500 USD). Influencers can also be prohibited from endorsing any product or service for a period of up to three years.
CONCLUSION
Paid news, hidden political endorsements, and anything that undermines the vote are immediate threats to democracy in that they are designed to deceive people and affect free and fair elections. In instances where media outlets publish paid content and pretend it is factual, they obstruct the truth and try to confuse the voter. While paid news and hidden political endorsements are somewhat addressed in laws such as the Representation of the People Act and IT Rules, the space is unregulated since there is little enforcement and there is no clear legal definition for the term or concept of paid news. Moving forward, we must have clearer rules, greater awareness, and much more transparency; the media must be factually accurate and transparent, while voters must wish to be informed enough to make fair decisions when voting and engage in the democratic processes.
REFERENCES
- https://www.advocatekhoj.com/library/lawreports/electoralreforms/69.php?Title=Electoral%20Reforms
- https://pwonlyias.com/current-affairs/paid-news/
- https://lawfullegal.in/paid-news-and-political-propaganda/
- https://ijrar.org/papers/IJRAR23A1682.pdf
- https://www.lawyersclubindia.com/articles/electoral-reforms-11766.asp
- VIOLATION OF ARTICLE 19 (1) (a): RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSION
- THE REPRESENTATION OF THE PEOPLE ACT, 1951
- THE PRESS COUNCIL OF INDIA ACT,1978
- CABLE TELEVISION NETWORKS (REGULATION ACT, 1995)
- IT RULES, 2021
- ARTICLE 324: SUPERINTENDENCE, DIRECTION AND CONTROL OF ELECTIONS TO BE VISITED IN AN ELECTION COMMISSION
- ARTICLE 14: EQUALITY BEFORE LAW
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