News Broadcasting
Aaj Tak Bangla hits one million YouTube subscribers
Mumbai: Aaj Tak Bangla, the leading Bengali YouTube channel from the stable of India Today Group, marked a significant achievement by surpassing one million subscribers within a mere one year and five months since its launch.
Breaking away from conventional news reporting, Aaj Tak Bangla has captured over 30 million views on YouTube in a month (Source: vidiQ | YouTube video views | 1-31 Jan-2024) with its refreshing and dynamic approach. The channel, led by news editor Showbhik Chowdhury and input editor Indrajit Kundu, has become the go-to source for news-hungry intellectual Bengali audiences, delivering an impressive 3k plus news stories in a month.
In addition to its ground-breaking news coverage, Aaj Tak Bangla has ventured into infotainment news, carving a unique space in the media landscape. This diverse content strategy has garnered a niche viewership, establishing the channel as a trendsetter in the digital news arena. One of the standout features of Aaj Tak Bangla over the past year is the introduction of AiNA, the world’s first Bengali AI Anchor. This groundbreaking move has set-forth a new standard in news presentation, showcasing Aaj Tak Bangla’s commitment to innovation and staying ahead of the curve.
Aaj Tak Bangla has also emerged as the largest Bengali news media WhatsApp channel, amassing an impressive following of 1.28 lac within just three months. This achievement surpasses the nearest competitor, who lags behind with only 80,000 followers. The rapid growth of the WhatsApp channel reflects Aaj Tak Bangla’s commitment in engaging its audience across various platforms.
In an industry where traditional media adapts to new formats, Aaj Tak Bangla stands out as a true trendsetter, challenging mainstream media and establishing itself as a force to be reckoned with. The channel’s rapid growth and unwavering commitment to quality content have positioned it as a key player in the evolving digital news landscape.
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.
