Media monitoring ordered to keep society from immorality

The Cabinet on Monday ordered the General Commission for Audiovisual Media to monitor the moral and other content of traditional and electronic media, including social media platforms.
The Cabinet meeting, chaired by Crown Prince Salman, authorized the commission to draft laws and regulations for this purpose and said it should keep abreast of the latest technical developments.
The Cabinet wants the commission to educate the public on the positive role modern communication and media technology can play in the service of the nation and humanity. It also wants the commission to warn the public about dangerous content harmful to individuals and society.
The Cabinet urged the commission to form a national committee to regulate the content of media platforms. The commission’s chairman would head the committee, and its members would include representatives from several relevant agencies.
“The new committee will play a significant role in monitoring media content in general and promoting media awareness among the public,” said Culture and Information Minister Abdul Aziz Khoja.
The committee will help protect society from the spread of licentiousness. It will also work to enhance society’s awareness of the moral content of all media, the Cabinet said.
The Cabinet took the decision based on a proposal made by the Higher Committee for Administrative Organization concerning media affairs.
The Cabinet decision follows a warning issued by Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh against attempts to spread propaganda through social media platforms and attacking and blaming the state for what it does in the service of Islam and Muslims.
“They seek to undermine the social fabric and are platforms for malice that promote misleading doctrines,” the mufti said, while delivering a lecture at Taibah University in Madinah recently.