News Broadcasting
MIRROR NOW launches ‘The Last Word’
MUMBAI: Mirror Now, a channel that fights for you and channelizes its focus on issues that impact you every day launches ‘The Last Word’. The show will be anchored by MIRROR NOW popular primetime anchor, Tanvi Shukla.
Promising high viewer engagement, the structured format of ‘The Last Word’ raises issues that are critical to our citizens and demand accountability from the powers that drive improvement. At every stage of the debate, the audience will express their opinions and act as a panel of jury. This will enable viewers to express their concerns and appreciations for their elected representatives by giving their ‘THE Last Word’ as the verdict. The key highlight of the show will be the audience LIVE polls through Twitter and Involvement of the callers. This show will bring the idea of participatory democracy in its true essence – Making the public, the judge, jury and prosecutor.
Commenting on The Last Word, Mirror Now executive editor Faye D’souza said, “With MIRROR NOW, the focus has always been on the citizens. We have cultivated a loyal viewership by showcasing subjects that affect day-to-day lives of Urban Indians. The idea behind our new 10 pmshow is to raise issues that are pertinent to viewers and force the authorities to answer and act. ‘THE LAST WORD’ will aim to truly be the platform where such issues are brought closer to the results that citizens expect and seek.”
True to its promise of putting You First, MIRROR NOW with its flagship show, `The Urban Debate’, holds and questions people in power accountable, for any inefficiency and apathy that affects day-to-day life of citizens. The new show `The Last Word’, that voices the views of the people to the authorities, will further accelerate the emerging dominance of MIRROR NOW with a significant and growing market share of 14%* in the primetime band.
*Source: BARC| Megacities| NCCS AB Males 22+| Wk 40-43’17, weekdays, 2000-2200hrs
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.
