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BBC launches ‘Democracy Live’
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC will be providing the public with access to the democratic institutions across the UK.
Democracy Live offers live and on-demand video coverage of the UK‘s national political institutions and the European Parliament at bbc.co.uk/democracylive, backed by innovative search technology to allow the public to follow political debates and developments around the areas and issues that matter to them most.
Democracy Live will provide unmediated content straight to the public who can view information first hand and through the various features find out about their elected representatives and the decision-making process.
The extensive guides, search facilities and the easy navigation are designed to ensure Democracy Live provides information for people with different levels of interest, supporting the BBC‘s commitment to build a greater understanding of the democratic institutions amongst the public.
BBC Political Programmes head Sue Inglish says, “Democracy Live is an important addition to the way the BBC brings politics to our audiences across the UK, allowing people to see first hand the work of their elected representatives and ensuring we have a healthy and informed democracy.
“This is precisely the sort of different content the BBC should be providing in fulfilling our public service remit and representing all of the democratic institutions in the UK.”
The key feature of the Democracy Live home page is an eight-screen video wall covering full sittings of the institutions and committee proceedings.
The search engine is based on an innovative “speech-to-text” system which allows users to search the video for specific topics and contributors from the Democracy Live archive. The archive holds the items of business which have been covered live on the site.
In addition to live and on-demand coverage, Democracy Live features a Historic Moments section containing video of memorable political events over the past two decades.
Democracy Live also offers guides to each of the institutions and an explanation of how the UK‘s devolved political system works. People will be able to follow representatives they are interested in and Democracy Live will gather video in which they appear and store this to be watched later.
A Comment section brings together all of the BBC‘s main political blogs and offers a place for public figures to explore topical issues.
The first of these contributions is an article by the House of Commons Speaker, John Bercow MP, exploring what reform is needed to rebuild the level of public trust in the House of Commons.
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With 57 per cent single new users, Ashley Madison rebrands as discreet dating platform
Platform says majority of new members now identify as single
INDIA: Ashley Madison is shedding the “married-dating” label that defined it for two decades, repositioning itself as a platform for discreet dating in what it calls the post-social media age.
The rebrand, unveiled in India on 27 February, 2026, marks a structural shift in business model and identity. Once synonymous with married dating, the company now describes itself as the “premier destination for discreet dating” under a new tagline: Where Desire Meets Discretion.
The pivot is data-driven. Internal figures show that 57 per cent of global sign-ups between 1 January and 31 December, 2025 identified as single: a notable departure from the platform’s married core. The company argues that its community has already evolved beyond its original positioning.
“In an age where our lives have been constantly put on public display, privacy has become the new luxury,” said Ashley Madison chief strategy officer Paul Keable. He framed the platform’s offering as “ethical discretion” for singles, separated, divorced and non-monogamous users seeking private connections.
The shift also taps into wider digital fatigue. A global survey conducted by YouGov for Ashley Madison, covering 13,071 adults across Australia, Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, the UK and the US, found mounting discomfort with hyper-public online lives.
Among dating app users, 30 per cent cited constant swiping and messaging as a source of fatigue, while 24 per cent pointed to pressure to curate public-facing profiles and early personal disclosure. Some 27 per cent said fears of screenshots or information being shared contributed to exhaustion; an equal share cited unwanted attention.
The retreat from oversharing appears broader. According to the survey, 46 per cent of adults actively try to keep most aspects of their life private online. Only 8 per cent feel comfortable sharing most aspects publicly, while 35 per cent say they are becoming more selective about what they disclose.
Ashley Madison is betting that this cultural recalibration towards controlled visibility can be monetised. By doubling down on privacy infrastructure and reframing itself around discretion rather than infidelity, the company is attempting to convert reputational baggage into a premium proposition.
