September 16, 2022 – The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has banned the transmission of ARY News and BOL News for three days, according to an official notification dated September 15.
The channels continued transmission without installing an “effective time delay mechanism”, said the media watchdog.
— Report PEMRA (@reportpemra) September 15, 2022
PEMRA cited its earlier notice issuing directives for TV channels to install a time delay mechanism in their transmission, set up an independent editorial board, and update the authority on these developments. During this time, PEMRA said, no channel would be allowed to telecast live any public events.
— Report PEMRA (@reportpemra) September 5, 2022
PEMRA accused ARY News and BOL News of violating the authority’s orders and regulations. The chief executive officers of both channels were summoned in person, but they didn’t appear before the authority and filed responses instead. The authority banned the transmission of both channels for three days and issued directives to cable operators and network distributors, the notification added.
Earlier this month, PEMRA shut down BOL TV transmission for what the authority said was the network’s failure to get security clearance from the Ministry of Interior.
On the other hand, in August, the interior ministry issued a notice cancelling the no-objection certificate (NOC) of ARY News, citing “adverse reports from agencies”. The notification was subsequently suspended by the Sindh High Court.
