News Broadcasting
BBC to launch World News Today for South Asians
MUMBAI: BBC World is eyeing the South Asian and Indian audiences. The channel is launching a South Asia-focused edition of World News Today as part of its plan to establish a regular branded hour-long news programme.
Slated to kick off on 23 July, the prime time show at 9.30 pm will be an ‘addition to the local news, which needs global attention.’ It will leverage the resources that BBC has in all the South Asian countries especially India.
Presented by the reputed BBC World news presenter Nik Gowing, the show slotted for all week days will have a mix of politics, business, entertainment, sports, crime, art and culture in its content.
“India is an extra-ordinary place with unexpected events happening at all the time. India and Indians are currently making news across the globe in areas as diverse as business, finances, arts and cinema. World News Today strives to bring BBC World viewers across South Asia the latest international headlines with impartial analysis, insights and global perspectives on news stories that are of relevance to them,” Gowing said while addressing the press in Mumbai.
BBC World head of news Richard Porter said, “World News Today will be compulsory viewing for anyone who wants to keep on top of global news and current affairs in India. It continues to support the strap line ‘What effects the world effects you’.”
Gowing said that the common man on the street is real observer of what is happening in the society. They provide the journalist with the basic facts and real reports of incidents. The journalists only verify the facts and present it to the world. This is based on the basic principles of connecting with the people, which ‘shortens the time’.
However Gowing seemed apprehensive about using blogs as the programme content. He said, “Definitely blogs provide valuable source and information. But they are too personalised and partial in nature.”
Commenting on the present stature of ‘sensationalising and dramatising’ news by the Indian TV news channels, Nik said, “Any important news irrespective of being good or bad is broadcast. News is about getting the basic facts without dramatising the event or the incidents.”
News Broadcasting
Times Network to air JVC Exit Poll across 5 regions on April 29
Four-hour broadcast spans states and Puducherry with data-led analysis
MUMBAI: Times Network is set to roll out what it calls one of its most expansive election programming efforts yet, culminating in the JVC Exit Poll on 29 April, with a multi-hour broadcast spanning key poll-bound regions.
The exit poll will air across Times Now and Times Now Navbharat, beginning at 5pm and 4pm respectively. Co-powered by Vedanta and Jindal Stainless, the programming aims to combine on-ground reportage with data-driven projections across West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and Puducherry.
The network has deployed over 50 journalists across these regions, gathering voter sentiment and local insights in the run-up to polling. The effort builds on its ongoing election formats such as Election Yatra and Election Premier League, which have tracked campaign narratives and community-level issues.
In parallel, Times Now Navbharat has focused on constituency-level reporting in West Bengal through its Jan Gan ka Mann series, capturing voter opinions across diverse segments.
The coverage has also featured interviews with prominent political leaders. Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Congress leaders Ramesh Chennithala and V D Satheesan have appeared on the network’s election specials. From Tamil Nadu, voices including deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran, BJP leader K Annamalai and NTK’s Seeman have also featured in discussions.
On the day of the exit poll, the network’s primetime anchors, including Navika Kumar, Zakka Jacob and Sumit Awasthi, will lead the coverage. They will be joined by a panel of political analysts, psephologists and senior journalists offering real-time insights and interpretation of trends.
The programming will integrate grassroots reportage with analytics from the JVC Exit Poll, aiming to give viewers an early sense of electoral outcomes ahead of the official results on 4 May.
With its combined English and Hindi broadcast reach, Times Network is positioning this effort as a comprehensive look at voter sentiment, blending field reporting, data and debate to decode what could lie ahead when the final mandate is revealed.
