News Broadcasting
TV9 Marathi surfs on to DD Free Dish; expands reach
MUMBAI: TV9 Marathi has become the first Marathi news channel to launch on DD Free Dish, India’s largest free-to-air direct-to-home platform. This strategic move significantly broadens the channel’s viewership, delivering Marathi news to millions of additional households across Maharashtra.
“At TV9, we have already created many firsts in the industry. While certain organisations may adopt controversial methods to grow viewership, here is another meaningful first from TV9 Network: TV9 Marathi is the first regional language news channel available on DD Free Dish. We are glad that we will now be able to reach the vast DD Free Dish audience, that has been so far deprived of TV9 Marathi,” said TV9 Network MD & CEO Barun Das.
TV9 Marathi has consistently led the Marathi news genre for three consecutive years, according to BARC data, claimed TV9 in a press release. The channel’s innovative programming and in-depth reporting have established it as a primary source of news for viewers in Maharashtra. The move to DD Free Dish further solidifies this position.
TV9 Marathi business head Bhushan Khot highlighted: “TV9 Marathi has been a dominant leader for three years and has become the one and only choice of viewers; hence, we have a new brand positioning that suits our aggressive style of news reporting and presentation and our entire approach as a fearless brand. The brand positioning of TV9 Marathi, Ekmev (one and only), reaffirms the fact that TV9 Marathi is the ultimate news destination for viewers in Maharashtra.”
TV9 managing editor Umesh Kumawat added: “TV9 Marathi will now, give the viewers of DD Free Dish an opportunity to watch Maharashtra’s Ekamev of Marathi news. TV9 Marathi has been a trendsetter in the Marathi news genre and has brought a key shift in news presentation, which the competition has often tried to follow. From common people to decision-makers, all rely on TV9 Marathi for news breaks and updates, which shows the kind of trust the brand has built over the years.”
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
