News Broadcasting
BBC Magazines’ ‘Top Gear,’ ‘Top of the Pops’ boost circulation
MUMBAI: BBC Magazines’ Top Gear and Top of the Pops are two of the publisher’s success stories as part of a strong performance across its portfolio, according to the latest ABC circulation figures released in the UK.
Total circulation for BBC Magazines is up 5.9 per cent year on year. Top Gear broke through the 200,000 circulation barrier for the first time, at 200,286, an increase of 5.4 per cent year on year. Top of the Pops magazine shows the biggest growth in the teen market, with 124,852, an increase of 18.9 per cent. Preschool titles are up 8.3 per cent at 605,290, with In the Night Garden reaching over 100,000 copies. The magazine had launched in September 2007.
BBC History also shows growth at 58,395, up 8.6 per cent, its highest ever ABC. Radio Times though is slightly down at 2.6 per cent. As far as the BBC Food titles are concerned, Olive is up 25 per cent at 90,236 and Good Food is at 365,978 up 4.4 per cent.
BBC Magazines MD Peter Phippen says, “I am delighted with yet another great set of results for BBC Magazines. I believe this shows that when you offer consumers informative, quality titles with clearly defined propositions, demand for magazines in this multi-media age is stronger than ever.”
Top Gear magazine associate publisher Simon Carrington says, “Top Gear magazine has delivered its highest ever ABC cracking the 200k copies mark – an exceptional total representing the magazine’s tenth consecutive period of growth.
“Top Gear’s latest ABC of 200,286 has been achieved by a series of great covers, a successful marketing programme and a huge public demand for the brand. This result means that we now outsell our nearest motoring rival What Car? by 92,474 copies.
“Subscription sales, a great benchmark for success, have also performed fantastically for Top Gear. The magazine now has over 50,000 loyal UK readers subscribing on a monthly basis. It’s also great to see a good performance from the general motoring market which continues to show stability, proving that there remains a strong consumer appetite for motoring titles.”
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
