News Broadcasting
BBC’s new campaign features network’s achievements
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster The BBC is launching a brand new television marketing campaign in the UK. This will demonstrate the extreme lengths its staff experience daily to produce quality programming for its audience.
The campaign – the first of its kind since 1997’s Perfect Day – will feature real life examples of BBC achievements, large and small. Each trail will feature a different story demonstrating the passion and commitment of individuals working for the organisation – punctuated by the simple endline – This is what we do.
Four trails will launch tomorrow 25 March. Kabul tells the story of John Simpson and his news team’s struggle to broadcast the fall of the Afghan capital when a lorry carrying satellite equipment broke down in the mountains.
Instead of assuming defeat the team dismantled the satellites and put them on donkeys – enabling them to arrive in Kabul 20 minutes before they were due to go live on air. The Office asks the audience: “Who would commission a sitcom from someone who had never written, directed or acted in one before?”, before showing a clip from the hit BBC Two sitcom.
Wall shows a BBC cameraman in action during a conflict between Iraqi and British troops. Snow Leopard tells the story of the search for an animal rarely caught on camera – and the efforts that were made to get it on film for BBC ONE’s Planet Earth.
BBC head brand and planning Helen Kellie said, “What truly sets the BBC apart is the extraordinary lengths our people go to to get great content for our audience. This campaign shows the public some of that magic.”
The campaign, which was developed for the BBC by Fallon, uses existing behind-the-scenes footage – no director or production company was required or involved.
News Broadcasting
Mihir Bhatt appointed as chief content officer at News18 Studios
The media veteran brings two decades of experience across television, digital and radio to one of India’s biggest broadcast networks, Disney+ Hotstar, Discovery+
NEW DELHI: Network18 has a new strategist in the building. Mihir Bhatt, one of Indian media’s more versatile operators, has joined News18 Studios as chief content officer, stepping into a role that will see him shape content strategy, build multi-platform properties and drive brand partnerships across the network.
Bhatt brings more than two decades of experience spanning television, digital and radio, with a track record of doing something rare in Indian media: combining editorial ambition with hard commercial results. At Times Network, where he served as managing editor and chief business officer of Times Influence, he built one of the industry’s more respected content studios, launching marquee properties such as the India Economic Conclave, the Times Now Summit and Leaders of Tomorrow. He also pushed the network into premium OTT territory through tie-ups with Disney+ Hotstar and Discovery+.
His resume stretches well beyond the studio. Bhatt has led Global Investor Summits for multiple state governments, worked alongside the World Economic Forum and played a pivotal role in launching the Indian Pickleball League. Earlier, as editor of Zee Business, he pioneered investor education initiatives that are still cited as industry benchmarks.
At News18 Studios, Bhatt will report to chief executive S Shivakumar and will oversee the studios execution vertical alongside revenue verticals covering emerging markets and campaigns. Sidharth Saini, Hemanth Kumar and Nimar Sarkaria will work under him.
Rahul Joshi, managing director and editor-in-chief of Network18 Group, made the announcement in an internal communication. “Mihir’s ability to build enduring brands, foster strategic partnerships and navigate a rapidly evolving media landscape will be instrumental as we continue to strengthen our position and explore new avenues of growth in the Studios business,” Joshi said.
In a media industry lurching between disruption and reinvention, Network18 has bet on a man who has spent two decades thriving in exactly that chaos. Whether he can do it again, at greater scale, is the question worth watching.
