News Broadcasting
Casbaa to sponsor Emmies’ regional voting
HONG KONG: The Cable & Satellite Broadcasting Association of Asia (Casbaa) has announced it will be sponsoring the 2002 International Emmy Awards regional voting in Hong Kong for the Asian movies and mini-series category. This category, judged in Hong Kong, attracted 14 semi-finalists from across Asia and was reflected in similar voting in London, Paris and Miami.
Hosted by Casbaa-member company Media Financial Services (MFS) and supported by Casbaa member Bloomberg Television, the International Emmys event is organised by the International Council of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. The 2002 final Awards will be made in November at the United Nations headquarters in New York City, an official release says.
“The objective of stimulating quality local programming is one of the highest priorities on the Casbaa agenda,” said Simon Twiston Davies, CEO, Casbaa. “This has been a great opportunity to work with a global body dedicated to promoting the highest standards for TV production. We are certainly proud that our organization has been invited to help select and supply judges for this prestigious event.”
Among Casbaa member companies sitting on the judging panel were I-Cable, Star Group, TVBI, APV, Walt Disney International and Columbia Tristar Asia Pacific. Bloomberg Television in Hong Kong supplied the venue for the Hong Kong round of judging, while MFS acted as the official host.
“This is a very important milestone for the development of television in Asia and we are delighted to be working with Casbaa on this project and hope to work them in future years,” said Michael Spiessbach, chairman of MFS.
“We are very pleased to partner with CASBAA in what we hope is the first of many projects we initiate in Asia,” said MJ Sorenson, director of marketing and communications for the International Council. “CASBAA’s high level membership is important for us as we are seeking to grow an Asian base of broadcasters, producers and distributors.”
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:Â 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.
