News Broadcasting
FM players fear community radio interference
MUMBAI:They may be as different as chalk and cheese in their outlook and content.
But the proposed entry of short range community radios is not being viewed too kindly by private FM operators in the country. The Indian government recently announced its plans to revolutionize radio broadcasting in the country by allowing low power radio stations in major localities. 5000 such stations will shortly spring up across the country, with educational institutions being given the first go ahead for the venture.
Star India Radio CEO John Catlett feels that while the government move is directed by good intentions, it will only add to the clutter of frequencies available in say, a city like Mumbai. The low cost community FM radio centers with a five kilometer range are to be set up without any license fee, as per a draft cabinet proposal currently doing the rounds. The stations can be set up with an initial investment of Rs 500,000 to 1000,000. India’s spare spectrum capacity is to be utilized for allowing these stations to come up.
The catch however is that while these stations can provide entertainment, they cannot solicit commercials and have to be funded jointly by individuals or by organizations. Catlett says that while the community stations are not a threat to commercial stations who by their very nature are market oriented, the new entrants could add to the confusion about the identities of channels and frequencies – a problem that stations are trying hard to overcome. Catlett says the private FM operators are planning to come together on an industry platform to speak collectively to the government on the issue and to convince the powers that be of the practical difficulties of the proposal.
While private FM is available in four metros and 19 FM bands are being broadcast, community radio is expected to literally throw open the floodgates to at least 5,000 neighbourhood stations that will start airing niche content from early next year. As soon as the Union cabinet gives clearance, the wireless planning and coordination department of the telecom ministry will step in, allocating the frequencies for every neighbourhood radio centre.
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.
