Counter Terrorism and Transnational Crime (CTTC) unit Chief, Monirul Islam, has said district level media cells are being set up to control the spread of rumours centring on the upcoming general election.
“Media cells are being set up by police at the district level to prevent the circulation of propaganda, mainly through social media, websites, and news portals, during the forthcoming general election,” he said.
He made the statement on Saturday while addressing a roundtable discussion on “The Role of The Media in Containing Rumours and Violence.” The roundtable was organized at a Dhaka restaurant by the Media Museum of Bangladesh (MMB), a journalist platform .
The police officer said a number of vested quarters are actively trying to spread propaganda online, both from home and abroad.
“Troublemakers try to cash in by creating unrest through rumours, which was noticed during the Ramu and Nasirnagar attacks, and the 2014 Hefazat demonstration,” he added.
Describing social media and online news outlets as two major modern-day tools for spreading propaganda, The CTTC unit chief urged the media to more thoroughly double-check and give the best treatment possible to news reports, to avoid untoward situations.
“Some are perpetrating criminal acts by posting provocative videos on YouTube as well,” he said, adding that police have been carrying out mass awareness programs in this regard.
Citing limitations of technology as one of the reasons it was difficult to stop rumours from circulating, he said it is not possible to block all fake online news portals, social media accounts, and webpages.
On the issue of the Election Commission restricting the shooting of videos and photographs inside voting rooms during the election, Monirul suggested the media report exactly what they see at polling stations.
Badiul Alam Majumder, secretary of civil society platform Shushashoner Jonno Nagorik (Shujan), said there is a possibility of the election being impacted by online rumours.
“If the US presidential election can be affected by such propaganda, there is a similar possibility in Bangladesh’s general election as well,” he said.
“Propaganda is the biggest threat to an active democracy as well as journalism,” he added, advising journalists to apply their utmost professional ethics when publishing a news report.
The Shujan leader also expressed his fear that there will be dire consequences if the election slated for December 30 is not held freely and fairly.
“Young people will be troubled most, with the possibility of many of them going astray,” he further said.
SM Badshah, president of MMB, read out a written statement at the event, while GTV CEO Syed Ishtiaq Reza, Independent TV Chief News Editor Ashish Saikat, and Channel 24 Chief News Editor Rahul Raha, also spoke.