News Broadcasting
Ashish Sehgal makes a timely move as Times Network CEO from early next month
MUMBAI: Ashish Sehgal is coming home to Times Group. The media industry heavyweight will take charge as chief executive officer of Times Network next month, ending a turbulent year and a half that saw two leadership exits and mounting operational drift.
Sehgal, who left Zee Entertainment Enterprises in October after a successful run as chief growth officer for broadcast and digital, will also serve as chief growth officer for business, sports and entertainment verticals within Vineet Jain’s portfolio. His arrival is expected to bring much-needed stability to a network that has been rudderless since the departure of long-serving chief executive M. K. Anand in July 2024.
The leadership vacuum deepened in August when chief operating officer Varun Kohli stepped down after just 13 months. Rohit Gopakumar, who juggles responsibilities across Worldwide Media and the entertainment and digital divisions, has been holding the fort since. Sehgal’s appointment will allow him to return to his core mandate.
Industry insiders see the move as a signal that Times Network is ready to stop the bleeding and start building again. Sehgal brings a reputation for sharp strategy and muscular execution. At Zeel, he drove performance across television and Zee5, steered the ILT20 Cricket League as business head, and delivered robust top-line growth as chief operating officer of Zee Unimedia between 2015 and 2020—widely regarded as one of the company’s strongest phases.
Before Zee, Sehgal cut his teeth at Star India, where he ran national sales for Star Gold after leading its northern operations. His career began at Univista TV and Times FM.
Reached for comment, Sehgal was cryptic. “No comment. I’m off on a holiday and will be spending time with my family.” Sources within Times Network, however, confirmed the appointment.
The network has been holding its breath. Now it can exhale.
(Updated 12 noon)
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.
