55% Netizens Fear Trouble From Authorities Over Their Political Views

At least 55% of English language Indian internet users fear that expressing political viewpoints online could get them into trouble with the authorities, said an India digital report prepared by the Reuters Institute.

“These high levels of concern could be based in part on recent events in India. Since 2012, at least 17 people have been arrested for posting material that was considered offensive or threatening to a politician,” the report said.

Shortly after the report, news from Uttar Pradesh came in highlighting the worsening situation. According to a  report in The Indian Express, at least seven government school teachers in the state have been suspended for criticising the ruling regime over the effectiveness of the Balakot strike.

Also Read: Facebook Post Critical of BJP Costs Dalit Professor His Award

In two cases, the teachers were suspended for allegedly violating the Model Code of Conduct after poll dates had been announced on March 10. The government has also ordered an FIR against a private school teacher. The topics they were commenting on ranged from questioning the impact of the Balakot airstrike to praising Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan.

One of the suspended teachers, primary school teacher Rajesh Shukla from Rae Bareli, wrote a Facebook post criticising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with reference to the RBI governor’s exit and pressures on LIC. Shortly, he was served with a suspension order stating he made “political statements” on social media while the model code of conduct was in place.

The teacher, however, told The Indian Express that people who were in favour of the ruling regime on social media are being allowed to continue posting.“There are several comments from several employees in favour of the ruling party, but no such action was ever taken. I did not make any comment against the government. I will respond to all allegations when I receive the chargesheet.”

India is a mobile first market, with 68% of respondents identifying smartphone as their main device for news, 31% saying they ONLY use mobile devices for news, higher than other countries we've surveyed. 2/8 pic.twitter.com/kXyyYwk09J

— Rasmus Kleis Nielsen (@rasmus_kleis) 25 March 2019

As many as 68% respondents consider smartphones as the primary device to access online news while 31% say they only use mobile devices for accessing online news. In these, 32% find news through direct search and 24% rely on social media. These figures are markedly higher than in other markets, including developing markets like Brazil and Turkey.

Social media platforms play a vital role to propagate news. Facebook and WhatsApp are particularly widely used, with 75% of respondents using Facebook and 52% users saying they get news there. While 82% of the respondents use WhatsApp, 52% gather news from there. Other social media widely used for news include Instagram (26%), Twitter (18%), and Facebook Messenger (16%).

“Online news generally (56%), and social media specifically (28%), have outpaced print (16%) as the main source of news among respondents under 35, whereas respondents over 35 still mix online and offline media to a greater extent,” the report said.

Also See: Be careful of what you read and watch on the social media

The survey data showed that 50% of respondents share and/or 33% comment on online news, with particularly high levels of engagement on Facebook and WhatsApp, but many also expressed concerns that openly expressing their political views online could make their friends or family think differently of them. This fear was expressed by 49% of the respondents. Half the respondents, (50%) said that engaging in social media make work colleagues or other acquaintances think differently of them. Most worryingly, 55% fear it could get them into trouble with authorities.

Even though the media industry has entered the next generation, most users still consider the legacy of media outlet as a determining factor for accessing online news. The report said, “The most widely used online news sources (beyond platforms) are generally the websites of leading legacy media including broadcasters and newspapers, but some digital-born news media have significant reach, including some alternative and partisan sites who despite limited name recognition have built relatively large audiences.”

“Our respondents have low trust in news overall (36%) and even the news they personally use (39%), but interestingly express higher levels of trust in news in search (45%) and social media (34%) than respondents in many other countries. Partisans at both ends of the political spectrum have similar levels of trust in the news, whereas non-partisans have lower levels,” the report said.

As many as 57% respondents were concerned whether online news they come across is real or fake. When they were asked about different kinds of potential disinformation, many expressed concern over hyperpartisan content (51%) and poor journalism (51%) as well as false news (50%).

The full report can be accessed here.

Read More: Tech for Democracy in the Brave New Digital World