News Broadcasting
Al Jazeera Intl to go live from 15 November; no govt ok yet for India feed
MUMBAI: After a number of delays, Doha-based Al-Jazeera Network has set the launch of its English news and current affairs channel AL Jazeera International for 15 November.
The launch of the channel had earlier being deferred from April to September on account of series of constructions and technical glitches at its four centres in London, Doha, Kuala Lumpur and Washington.
The Indian feed continues to remain in the realm of uncertainities.
The English offshoot of the often controversial (at least to Western eyes) Al Jazeera Arabic language channel will kick off its inaugural broadcast from its headquarters at 12 GMT. The announcement of the launch coincides with the 10-year anniversary of Al Jazeera.
To be beamed off Pas10, Al Jazeera International has already set up shop in India with a bureau headed by Anmol Saxena, who has been in the business of television for some years now.
The Indian operation has been dogged by delays in government permission, which has also resulted in other aspects of the business of TV not being put in place.
For example, though Al Jazeera is said to be negotiating with a senior distribution personnel in India for the channel talks haven’t been finalised as government permission is yet to come as of today, according to information available with Indiantelevision.com.
In all probability, the distribution activity would be outsourced in India to a company that is headed by a person who has done similar work in various media organisation.
Meanwhile on 15 November, the international channel will provide 12 hours of live news plus interview programmes and in-depth features and analysis from the world’s hot spots over a 24 hour day.
According to an official release, the channel will be positioned to reverse the information flow from South to North and to provide a voice to under-reported regions around the world.
With broadcast centres strategically placed in Doha, Kuala Lumpur, London and Washington DC, and supporting bureaux worldwide, Al Jazeera International aims to be a new force in the global English speaking media with the ability to seek out and cover different perspectives of news through on-the-ground reporting wherever news is made.
Al Jazeera Network director general Wadah Khanfar said: “We are extremely proud of what Al Jazeera has achieved over the past ten years. Al Jazeera today is an international media organisation. Al Jazeera International will build on the pioneering spirit of Al Jazeera and will carry our media model, based in the South, to the entire world.”
He added: “The launching of the English Channel offers the chance to reach out to a new audience that is used to hearing the name of “Al Jazeera” without being able to watch it or to understand its language. The new channel will provide the same ground-breaking news and impartial and balanced journalism to the English speaking world.”
“It has been a fantastic endeavour to build this TV channel over the last two years with the support of the Al Jazeera network. Everyone involved in the project deserves credit,” said Al Jazeera International MD Nigel Parsons, adding, “We will extend the Al Jazeera spirit into the English-speaking world.”
Al Jazeera’s English language website, aljazeera.net/english is being re-launched with the launch of the English language channel to reflect the channel’s look and feel and editorial content.
It will showcase Al Jazeera International’s agenda setting editorial mission and will provide constantly updated coverage of news events from around the world, along with in-depth analysis and background.
It will provide RSS feeds, live streams and downloadable clips from the channel, as well as interactive discussions and polling. Programme and presenter information as well as weather reports, live business data and sport will also be available via the website, informs the statement.
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.
