While acknowledging that data protection and privacy are vital, the Guild emphasised that they “must be balanced with the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech and the public’s right to know".
DPDP Rules ‘cripple RTI, endanger press freedom’: Editors Guild, DigiPub
Media bodies say new data protection framework risks chilling newsgathering, hindering accountability journalism and weakening RTI
The Editors Guild of India (EGI) and DigiPub (the representative body of digital media organisations) have issued strong statements slamming the Centre’s recent notification of the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Rules 2025, warning that they could hinder newsgathering, weaken the Right to Information (RTI) and impose disproportionate burdens on journalists.
In their statement on Wednesday (November 19), the Editors Guild expressed concern that the Rules “continue to leave critical questions unresolved for journalists and media organisations”.
The Guild noted that although the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had earlier assured press bodies that journalistic work would not fall under the DPDP Act, “there has been no official response since then”.
Lack of clarity
“The notified Rules do not alleviate these concerns. Ambiguous obligations around consent risk exposing journalists and newsrooms to compliance burdens that may impede routine reportage. Without explicit exemptions or clarifying guidance, the possibility remains that journalistic activities could be interpreted as “processing” requiring consent, thereby chilling newsgathering and hindering accountability journalism,” the statement said.
Calling for a “clear and categorical clarification exempting bona fide journalistic activity,” EGI said that in the absence of such guidance, “confusion and over-compliance will weaken press freedom and obstruct the media’s essential role in a democratic society.”
Also read: Big tech may see faster DPDP rules compliance timeline
While acknowledging that data protection and privacy are vital, the Guild emphasised that they “must be balanced with the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech and the public’s right to know.”
Indirect censorship
In its November 18 statement, DIGIPUB said the DPDP Act 2023 and the newly-notified Rules “collectively cripple the Right to Information Act, which is one of the most important legislations for democratic accountability” and “create a regulatory framework that endangers journalism.”
“By excluding journalists from any statutory exemption and granting the State broad access and enforcement powers, they open the door to indirect censorship, a chilling effect on free expression, and disproportionate surveillance of legitimate newsgathering activities. They endanger source confidentiality, hinder public-interest investigations, obstruct anti-corruption disclosures, and weaken the information framework essential for democratic accountability. The Rules also create avenues for disproportionate state overreach and covert interference with editorial independence,” the DIGIPUB statement said.
Undermining media freedom
It also criticised the government for not responding to a “consolidated set of critical questions and concerns” submitted after its July consultation with MeitY, calling the lack of engagement a “serious departure from the democratic consultative process expected in delegated legislation.”
Also read: DPDP rules: User rights constrained by state exemptions, loopholes, says activist
The organisation urged the government to “commence a reform process for the DPDPA, 2023 and DPDPR, 2025 to restore a clear statutory exemption for journalistic and public-interest processing” and to amend provisions that “undermine media freedom, the right to information, and the integrity of the digital public sphere.”