News Broadcasting
BBC Studios strengthens digital news team with new appointments
Mumbai: BBC Studios has announced a number of new roles aimed at further bolstering its digital news team. As a part of this expansion, News Corp SVP and global head of product Jennie Baird is brought on board to a newly created position of EVP and MD of digital news and streaming.
In this new role, Baird will lead on the development of the vision and investment plans needed to continue driving growth and audiences for the BBC’s digital news products around the globe. She will report to BBC Studios Americas president Rebecca Glashow, who is responsible for developing and commercialising the BBC’s digital news portfolio outside of the UK.
Baird will also assume responsibility for the BBC’s recently launched documentary and podcast services – BBC Select and BBC Podcasts, which are available to audiences in the US and Canada, said the statement.
“Jennie is a digital heavyweight in the constantly evolving news media landscape,” said Glashow. “As record audiences turn to the BBC for news they can trust, the creation of this role and her appointment reflect our ambitions to further reinforce our global news team and double down on our commitment to providing a world-leading digital offering.”
During her tenure at News Corp, Baird was responsible for developing digital solutions for News Corp’s range of media companies including Dow Jones, News UK, News Corp Australia, New York Post, Storyful, Realtor.com, Foxtel and HarperCollins Publishers.
“I am thrilled to be joining an organisation whose very name is synonymous with quality,” stated Baird on her new role. “At a moment in time when impartial, accurate, and trusted information is more essential than ever, I look forward to helping grow the digital reach of BBC News outside the UK, and to exploring innovative ways the BBC might better serve global news consumers.”
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: 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.
