In a major blow in the country’s media freedom, the government is set to shut down some more online news portals apart from those already facing a blockade for publishing fake news.
Speaking at a question-answer session in parliament on Tuesday, Information Minister Hasan Mahmud said the process to shut down the “shady” news portals was ongoing, reports bdnews.
He said the information ministry wrote to the Post and Telecommunication Division to revoke domain registration and block links to 179 such online news portals following High Court orders. The decision to close the portals was based on information gathered by detectives.
“The process is ongoing to shut down some more online news portals for publishing fake news, spreading rumours and getting involved in unethical activities,” the minister said.
He also said 1,126 dailies, weeklies and monthlies are published from Dhaka now. They include 499 dailies, 345 weeklies and 282 monthly magazines.
