News Broadcasting
BBC Television News announces editorial appointments
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC’s head of Television News, Peter Horrocks has announced two new appointments to his senior editorial team.
Kevin Bakhurst, currently the Editor of the BBC’s Ten O’clock News, has been promoted to the role of controller of BBC News 24. Amanda Farnsworth who is the current editor of the BBC’s Six O’clock News, has been appointed Editor, Daytime. This role, which covers the editorship of both the One and Six O’clock news bulletins.
Kevin Bakhurst, who was an editor of News 24 from 2001 to 2003, was appointed Editor of the BBC Ten O’clock News in March 2004. Under his editorship the Ten O’clock News received a Bafta for its coverage of the Madrid bombing, and also an RTS Award for News Programme of the Year.
Bakhurst joined the BBC in 1989 as assistant producer in the Business and Economics unit. In 1990 he became a producer for the BBC Nine O’clock News, and then assistant editor of the Nine and Ten O’clock bulletins from 1996 to 2001.
Farnsworth joined the BBC as a news trainee in 1986 before working as an assistant producer on Panorama and producer on Newsnight. In 1994 she became BBC bureau editor in Washington DC and returned to the UK to join BBC News 24 as launch editor in 1997.
Horrocks said, “Kevin has been a highly successful editor of the Ten. He will bring his incisive editorial and organisational skills to help News 24 grow even further. Amanda will bring creative imagination and a strong understanding of the strategic future direction of News to this crucial role.”
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
