News Broadcasting
Al Jazeera appoints Amanda Palmer to head entertainment division
MUMBAI: Al Jazeera International, the 24-hour English-language news and current affairs channel has appointed Amanda Palmer to head the entertainment department.
Palmer will write, produce and design entertainment programmes for Al Jazeera International, besides hosting the shows and also lead the creative team in covering international entertainment for the network.
Amanda Palmer has been associated with CNN, the Associated Press Television Network, and as European foreign correspondent for Channel Seven Australia, informs an official release.
In keeping with Al Jazeera Internationals aim to bring English speaking viewers around the world a fresh 360 degree perspective on world news and current affairs, Palmer will travel the globe to take the pulse of destinations across the planet, exploring everything from cultural and religious events, to the social and economic background behind each unique location with a special emphasis on people.
Al Jazeera Internationals viewers will also be introduced to a whole new community of international filmmakers, which will be a regular show on the channel.
Al Jazeera International director of programmes Paul Gibbs states, “Our programme genres will reflect the most important areas from technology, politics, religion, womens issues and business news which will be presented to viewers from Al Jazeera Internationals fresh global perspective.”
On the other hand, Palmer adds, “Well be offering our audience an alternative look at destinations across the globe and bypassing the clichés of entertainment programming. Im looking to go beyond the red-carpet as well, and introduce the world to those interesting people behind the neon lights.
Amongst Palmers high-profile interviews with acclaimed international filmmakers include; Lord of the Rings composer Howard Shore, Russell Crowe, Ron Howard, Gabriele Salvatores and Fernando Meirelles. In recent years she has also travelled to Moscow to interview Paul McCartney for his first concert performance in Russia, Sting in Venice, Black Eyed Peas in Verona, as well as Beyonce, Kylie Minogue, Dido and Italian music icons Zucchero and Eros Ramazzotti..
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
