News Broadcasting
Ratings climb higher for Ten, DD catches up
MUMBAI: Both Ten Sports and Doordarshan have propelled into the top ten in the ratings charts this week, the satellite broadcaster a whisker ahead of the pubcaster.
While Ten managed a TVR of 10.7 for the one day international played between India and Pakistan on 16 March 2004, ranking sixth in the top 100, Doordarshan came in at number seven, clocking a TVR of 10.0.
While Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii on Star Plus refused to let go of the top five spots, the ODI fetched better ratings for the two channels than the earlier week, when Ten Sports came in at number 14 with a TVR of 8.5 and DD followed at number 24 with a TVR of 6.4.
While Ten Sports has obviously benefited from the double exposure that the ODI fetched by being simulcasted on the channel as well as DD, Doordarshan, despite stellar ratings, has not much to show for it. While advertisers have gone away smiling, DD which announced a Rs 100 million profit for a free telecast of the first match, has had to contend with providing the entire Ten feed from the second match on.
The ratings will probably get better as the ODI series reached its climactic end on 23 March 2004. Ten Sports should feel vindicated.
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.
