To quickly react to ‘negative news’, government plans setting up teams of experts: Report

Besides the nodal officer from Press Information Bureau (PIB), the team could comprise of senior officer from each department.

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To respond to negative news that appears in the media, the government is planning to set up teams of experts in various ministries, reported a leading daily.
According to Sunday Express, departments of various ministries were advised to form a list of experts including people from outside the government and keep their contact details ready. These expert would be called if an issue becomes big and to present the government's case in a pertinent manner when the issue becomes critical.
Quoting a senior officer, the report said that during the recent Gujarat violence, the government did not manage the media well, and at the high level (PMO) it was felt that there was no effective communication.
The report further added that besides the nodal officer from Press Information Bureau (PIB), the team could comprise of senior officer from each department.
Recently, the NDA government issued separate show-cause notices to an English and two Hindi news channels for their coverage of the of Yakub Memon's execution on July 30, 2015.
The government had said that the three private channels had shown disrespect to the Supreme court's decision and also to the President of India's refusal to grant clemency to the 1993 Mumbai blasts convict.
In this process, The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting will play a role in drafting quick response on sensitive news to ensure that the voice of the government is heard.