News Broadcasting
Andrew Baxter joins BBC Worldwide as head of commercial policy
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster the BBC’s commercial arm BBC Worldwide has appointed Andrew Baxter as head of commercial policy. Baxter will be responsible for the full range of commercial policy matters relating to all of BBC Worldwide’s seven businesses. In particular, he will work to ensure that all of BBC Worldwide’s commercial activities serve the BBC’s wider goal by competing fairly in the marketplace, operating efficiently and through protecting the BBC’s reputation and promoting the BBC’s brand.
He has management responsibility for BBC Worldwide’s compliance with the BBC’s fair trading commitment, Editorial Policy guidelines and the requirements of the new Charter. He will also take the lead in working with the BBC in developing new policy.
BBC Worldwide director of business affairs Sarah Cooper said, “I am delighted to welcome Andrew to the company at a time of exciting new developments. Now that the BBC Charter has been agreed and the remit for BBC Worldwide’s activities has been clarified and endorsed, we are moving ahead with our plans to further increase profits for the BBC whilst ensuring we protect its brand, both at home and abroad. Our strategy includes building some important commercial digital opportunities for our parent and for the UK licence fee payer in what is a fast-changing media landscape.
“A rigorous commercial policy is essential for any global brand with a reputation as strong as ours, and it is core to our business to ensure we always operate according to the four criteria laid down in the Government White Paper published earlier this year. Andrew’s extensive commercial and legal experience across the television industry and his breadth of understanding of regulatory, rights and competition issues will be invaluable as we take BBC Worldwide on to the next stage of growth.”
Baxter said, “It is great to be joining BBC Worldwide at such an exciting time. The cornerstones of Commercial Policy – efficiency, respect for the brand, and fair and transparent trading – are policies which make sense for any responsible business and should help drive profitability and growth. I am very much looking forward to what I see as a really positive and enabling role.”
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.
