News Broadcasting
George Entwistle is BBC controller, knowledge commissioning
MUMBAI: George Entwistle has been named as the new BBC Controller of Knowledge Commissioning.
In this role, Entwistle will be responsible for delivering the recently launched knowledge building strategy across the BBC on TV and on the web, from landmark series to documentaries; across specialisms from arts to history, natural history, business, science and religion; to consumer journalism and contemporary factual.
He will head BBC Vision’s Knowledge and Learning commissioning teams who commission programmes and multi-platform content from Vision Productions and the independent sector, which together produce over 1,600 hours of output a year.
BBC Vision director Jana Bennett said, “As a programme maker and a creative leader, George has an impressive track record across a wide range of genres including current affairs, arts and science. This gives him a deep understanding of how to deliver great factual programmes for all audiences.
“He has been an outstanding member of the factual commissioning team and has also had real success leading the creative renewal in current affairs and during his time running BBC Four.
“Knowledge building is a cornerstone of the BBC’s future and this is an opportunity to bring the knowledge story together more powerfully across all channels, the web and other platforms, building on the foundations laid by Glenwyn Benson.”
Entwistle said, “The BBC’s knowledge output – on TV and every other platform – is right at the heart of our public purposes. I am delighted to be given the opportunity to play my part in taking forward our new Knowledge Strategy – in partnership with the exceptional talent across the BBC and the independent sector – to deliver factual content our audiences will find outstandingly valuable, compelling and enriching.”
In 1999, after ten years in current affairs, he joined the science department as Deputy Editor of BBC One’s flagship science show Tomorrow’s World.
He went from there to become Deputy Editor and, in 2001, Editor of Newsnight – which won five RTS awards during his editorship.
In 2004 he moved to BBC Arts to become Executive Editor of Topical Arts. There he launched The Culture Show for BBC Two.
He also spent several months as Chair of the Knowledge Building workgroup on Mark Thompson’s Creative Future strategy review.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
