News Broadcasting
Swaraj says no moves to control media
One thing that has been more than amply borne out in the communal conflagration that has engulfed Gujarat is that the government is speaking in different voices on the subject. Rejecting suggestions in the Rajya Sabha (upper house of parliament) that communal riots in Gujarat flared up because of media reports, information and broadcasting minister Sushma Swaraj today asserted the government did not intend to exercise control over the press. Swaraj added the proposed convergence commission would keep an eye on the contents in the print and electronic media.
Responding to supplementaries during Question Hour, Swaraj said the government did not control the press and lauded the Press Council of India for performing the role of a regulator very efficiently, the Press Trust of India reported.
Stating that in situations involving communal flare up there were always diverse opinions on the impact of media reporting, she said the Press Council chairman issued three appeals to the media to ensure that their reporting did not add to the flaring up of communal passions and aggravate the situation in Gujarat.
To a supplementary raised by Rajiv Ranjan Singh “Lalan” (Samata Party) whether the freedom of press was above the freedom of the country, RJD member Premchand Gupta said the press should not be gagged.
Responding to their views, Swaraj said the freedom of press was definitely under the Constitutional framework and the Press Council was there to play the role of a regulator.
Swaraj said the proposal to have a broadcasting council and a media council had been dropped in view of the proposed convergence commission, which will have a content panel to keep an eye on the print and electronic media coverage.
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.
