<div style="text-align: justify; "><b><span style="font-size: 1rem;">State Minister for Information and Broadcasting Mohammad Ali Arafat on Tuesday said BTRC (Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission) has been requested to close all unregistered online portals.</span><br></b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said this in Parliament while replying to the supplementary question of Feroz Ahmed Swapan, MP elected from Satkhira-1.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Swapan said in his supplementary question that Bangladesh journalism.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“We don't know the rules of our online portals. We are disturbed by unregistered online newspapers. Does it have any control measures?”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In response,&nbsp; Md Ali Arafat,&nbsp; a founder of Awami League-affiliated think tank in his previous life before entering politics.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said that his ministry is working very closely on these issues.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“He (Feroz Ahmed Swapan) rightly said that several online portals have sprung up like a frog umbrella. They practice yellow journalism, not journalism,” he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The State Minister said that misinformation creates various problems in the society.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Interestingly, those who do journalism with professionalism have demanded the closure of such portals and online magazines,” he added.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Arafat mentioned that journalists are saying that those who practice this type of yellow journalism have actually become a cause of loss for professional in the field, reports UNB</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“This demand is not only from members of Parliament or politicians or people from other levels of society, but from the journalist community itself.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">He said journalists claim that there are many unregistered online portals that are spreading misinformation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">“To stop them, I gave an instruction a few days ago. I will send to BTRC the full list of well-established media, electronic media, print media, their registered portals and also all the portals that have applied.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The State Minister mentioned that outside , there are many online portals they did Not even send an application.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“We will request them (BTRC) to close them all,” he added.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br></div><div style="text-align: justify; ">bnbd/fas</div>