News Broadcasting
News18 Network, BYJU’S get together for ‘Young Genius’
NEW DELHI: News18 Network, has announced its partnership with edtech company BYJU’S to launch a national campaign for showcasing, recognizing and inspiring young geniuses in different fields across the country. The centerpiece of the campaign will be a weekly episodic show that will air on TV beginning in January and ending in March 2021. Each episode will feature child prodigies scouted and selected by the news network’s editorial team from across different fields such as academics, performing arts, technology, and sports.
“We believe it is important to celebrate child prodigies who have through their gift, grit and determination attained mastery of their field at a very young age. Their stories will inspire children all over to follow their passion, work hard, and ultimately strive for excellence & creativity in their chosen field”, says Network18 CEO – Hindi news cluster Mayank Jain.
“We want to be a platform that showcases prodigious talent in this country using the might of our television news network reaching 50cr+ viewers. We aim to institute ‘Young Genius’ as a multi-year platform that serves to inspire creativity, innovation and excellence in our future generation”, adds Jain.
“At BYJU’S, we have always believed that every child is unique in their own way, talented in their own space and should be encouraged and inspired to learn at their own pace and style. And BYJU'S Young Genius aims to be a national platform that showcases spirited youngsters who have excelled in fields of their choosing – in turn inspiring children across India to pursue their passion and strive for excellence. This endeavour is in line with the underlying essence of BYJU’S vision – to encourage, motivate and spur children to keep learning and keep improving. This collaboration is poised to recognize some brilliant young talents of India, encourage many more to start their own journeys and is one more step in the right direction for BYJU’S to create holistic learning and growth experiences for children”, says BYJU'S VP – marketing Atit Mehta.
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
