A special monitoring of the Code of Conduct by the Press Council of Nepal has found 84 media outlets disseminating news material going against the journalists and the election code of conduct.
As of 5 pm on Wednesday, 15 print media, five television, 20 radio, and 44 online news portal were found to be publishing such content. Another five web-based portals were also found flouting the code of conduct.
Following the revelation, the council said that six have been issued a direction, attention was drawn to 46, 18 were alerted and 11 were asked to submit a clarification. A correspondence has been sent to the Nepal Telecommunication Authority to stop five unregistered news portals from being available within Nepal. In contrast, three online media have been contacted by phone, and the matter was brought to their attention.
Meanwhile, the Council has urged all media outlets, journalists, media workers, and users of social media to communicate news and advertisements considering the regulation that governs them during the elections.
President of the council, Balkrishna Basnet, said that the media should become more responsible and credible for the voters during the elections.