The National Broadcasting Commission NBC, will from the 1st of October this year, issue a fine of N50,000 to any broadcast station that airs hate speech expressed by callers during any phone-in program on their station.
The new policy was communicated in a statement sent to broadcast houses after a meeting at the NBC zonal office in Lagos on the 10th of August.
The Zonal director of NBC, Matthew Okoduwa, said the commission was worried by all the hate speeches that are being broadcast on many stations.
Okoduwa mandated that broadcast stations to “use screeners to censor calls before they go live on programs” and that only five call-in shows per day would be allowed in all broadcast stations.
He also announced that the cost of phone calls will now be borne by the station and not individuals calling in. Okoduwa said broadcast stations must be responsible enough to control the kind of comments Nigerians are allowed to make on their live television and radio broadcasts.
The NBC Zonal director also announced that broadcast stations are henceforth to hold just one newspaper review a day.
“Newspaper reviews can only be broadcast once a day in a station. Anything more than that would amount to a breach of the new rule,” the director explained.
Speaking on the discussion of judicial cases during any broadcast, Okoduwa henceforth, presenters cannot hold a discussion about ongoing court cases, stating that filed suits can only be discussed at the early stage and at the final stage after judgment has been given.
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