Ashwini Vaishnaw calls for accountability in digital media to combat misinformation

New Delhi: Batting for digital platforms taking more responsibility in the fight against fake news and disinformation, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Saturday said several instances of riots, terror acts and interference in democratic process have taken place because such platforms have refused to take responsibility for the content posted.

Citing “four challenges” confronting media, he also raised concerns over “algorithmic bias” on platforms that tends to prioritise content that incites strong reaction regardless of the factual accuracy in pursuit for more revenue, need for “fair compensation” by platforms for traditional media and “impact of Artificial Intelligence” on intellectual property rights.

Addressing the National Press Day celebrations here, Information and Broadcasting Minister Vaishnaw said the rapid spread of fake news, the “first challenge”, is a big threat not only to the media but also to democracy. He said false and misleading information can be “found in abundance” on all platforms, as they do not verify what is posted there.

Even those who are considered as aware citizens also fall into the trap of misinformation and the question that arises is who will take the responsibility for the content which is published on these platforms, he said.

“It is well known today that many riots including some in the developed world, many acts of terrorism, many in the rich world had interference in the democratic processes, including many instances in the developed world. Such instances have occurred because the platforms shied away from the responsibility for the content,” he said.

Underlining India's diversity, he asked shouldn’t there be more responsibility on the platforms while insisting that same metrics practised elsewhere cannot be applied to India due to its diversity.

Identifying fair compensation by platforms for content created by conventional media as the “second challenge”, he said the traditional media is losing out financially due to this.

He said the investment done by conventional media in creating a team of journalists, having editorial processes, methods to check the veracity of the news and, taking the responsibility of the content are “becoming irrelevant by the way these platforms are having a very unequal edge in terms of bargaining power they have vis a vis conventional media”.

Highlighting the “irresponsible and dangerous” algorithmic bias on platforms as the “third challenge”, he said it tends to prioritise content that incites strong reaction regardless of the factual accuracy. “In a country as diverse as India, misinformation and such algorithmic bias can have serious social consequences which we have seen in multiple instances,” he said.

Vaishnaw was also concerned about the impact of Artificial Intelligence (AI), the “fourth challenge”, as he wondered what happens to the intellectual property rights of the creators.

"What are the consequences for those original creators? Are they being compensated for their work? Are they being acknowledged for their work? Today the AI models are able to create music on the basis of a small note. This is because of the large amount of the music database which they have used while getting themselves trained,” he said.

He said there is a need to have more discussion around these challenges and one needs to rise above politics because these challenges are affecting the very fabric of the society.