News Broadcasting
Anthony Bourdain joins CNN, to host weekend show in 2013
MUMBAI: Chef, author and television personality Anthony Bourdain who has been seen in India on shows on channels like TLC, will join news broadcaster CNN as host of a new weekend programme, creating a signature showcase for the network’s coverage of food and travel.
The show airs early next year.
CNN Worldwide executive VP, managing editor Mark Whitaker.said, “For more than a decade, nthony Bourdain has been a trailblazer in educating Americans about different cuisines and cultures around the world, as well as an outspoken commentator on social trends ranging from the rise of celebrity chefs to the impact of fast food chains to the spread of vegetarianism and veganism. Examining the world through the prism of Tony’s unique expertise and passions continues CNN’s long-standing commitment to international reporting and to promoting global understanding.”
Slated to air domestically on Sundays in prime time with repeat airings on Saturday nights, it will mark a further step in broadening and distinguishing CNN’s weekend programming from its traditional weekday news coverage. The show will be shot on location and examine cultures from around the world through their food and dining and travel rituals.
The series will be produced by Zero Point Zero Production with executive producers and founders Chris Collins and Lydia Tenaglia, along with executive producer Sandy Zweig.
Zero Point Zero Production has been working with Anthony Bourdain for over a decade, producing ‘Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations‘, ‘The Layover‘, ‘A Cook‘s Tour‘, and ‘Decoding Ferran Adria‘.
Bourdain, whose reporting has taken him from the culinary capitals of Europe, Asia and North and South America to such historically war-torn or isolated regions as Vietnam, Mozambique, Uzbekistan and Romania, will also offer commentary on other CNN programs and platforms, domestically and internationally, providing insights into current events and debates around food and health and other cultural conversations.
He said, “I’m really looking forward to coming over to CNN. I think the world is going to get a whole lot bigger for me. I hope that old fans and new ones will be excited about what’s coming down the road.”
Bourdain has been the host of the Travel Channel series ‘Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations‘ since 2005. He previously hosted ‘A Cook’s Tour‘ on the Food Network and has appeared on US cable network Bravo’s competition series ‘Top Chef‘ and written for HBO’s New Orleans-based drama ‘Treme‘.
Bourdain is also the author of non-fiction and fiction books, including ‘Kitchen Confidential‘ and ‘A Cook’s Tour‘. He now oversees his own line of books from Ecco, a division of HarperCollins, the first three of which are scheduled to be released in 2013.
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.
