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TV Networks ban PETA’s Thanksgiving TVC
MUMBAI: TV Networks including NBC, ABC, Fox, Nickelodeon, ABC Family and other cable networks have banned a new television commercial (TVC) made by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) in the USA.
The commercial revolves around a little girl who says grace before her family‘s thanksgiving dinner and earnestly describes in her prayer how turkeys suffer on filthy factory farms.
The networks refused to allow PETA to buy airtime for the 30-second spot, even though they take advertising money from companies that carefully hide animals‘ true living conditions on factory farms and the cruelty of animal‘s deaths in slaughterhouses, says PETA in a statement.
The Learning Channel felt that the overall tone of the spot was very disturbing for our family viewers. NBC too said that this commercial did not meet its Universal standards.
On the other hand, the Discovery Kids channel commented, “Discovery, which as a whole, is very conservative and legal, feels that this spot would be too disturbing and traumatic for children to view.”
PETA had designed the ad to run during family programmes, including the Macy‘s Thanksgiving Day Parade, so that young viewers could decide for themselves whether or not to eat turkey this year.
Commented PETA EVP Tracy Reiman, “Young people have a natural affinity for all animals, including the gentle turkey, whom Benjamin Franklin wanted to make our national bird. They deserve to know why birds raised for the Thanksgiving table have nothing to be thankful for. Rather than contributing to factory-farming cruelty, many kids are now asking their parents for vegan holiday meals.”
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Gurpreet Singh named President of DishTV Alumni Network
Former Dish TV executive to lead community building and collaboration.
MUMBAI: Back to the dish, but this time it’s about connections, not channels Gurpreet Singh is returning to familiar territory with a new mandate that swaps subscribers for relationships. Singh has been appointed President of the DishTV Alumni Network, a move aimed at strengthening ties among former employees and building a more engaged professional community around the Dish TV ecosystem. The initiative reflects a growing trend among large organisations to formalise alumni networks as platforms for collaboration, mentorship and business opportunities.
The appointment draws on Singh’s deep-rooted history with Dish TV, where he held multiple leadership roles over nearly a decade. As National Business Head between June 2019 and September 2020, he oversaw profit and loss as well as operations, managing revenues of Rs 6,000 crore and leading a team of around 1,250 employees across the country. His tenure included working alongside two regional business heads and 16 circle heads, underscoring the scale of operations he handled.
Prior to that, Singh served as Executive Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue from 2016 to 2019, and earlier as Senior Vice President and National Head for Sales and Revenue. He also briefly led international operations as Country Head for Sri Lanka, further expanding his exposure across markets.
His broader career spans leadership roles across telecom and consumer businesses, including a stint as Chief Operating Officer at Bharti Airtel’s Malawi operations, senior leadership roles at Reliance Communications, and earlier positions at Hindustan Sanitaryware and Kodak India, where he spent over a decade.
In his new role, Singh is expected to focus on reconnecting former employees, fostering collaboration, and building a structured alumni ecosystem that leverages shared experience and industry networks. As companies increasingly recognise the long-term value of their extended workforce, the DishTV Alumni Network appears set to turn nostalgia into a strategic asset, one connection at a time.
