News Broadcasting
CNN Asia Pacific promotes Ellana Lee to VP
MUMBAI: News broadcaster CNN announced today that Ellana Lee is moving into a new position at the network’s Asia Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong.
Currently managing editor, her role as VP of Asia will expand her responsibilities to encompass all of CNN’s operations and award-winning on-air and online news and feature programming from across the Asia Pacific region.
“I’m thrilled and honored to be taking on this new position as Vice President. Asia Pacific is a remarkable and dynamic region and I look forward to working alongside our fantastic team of talented producers and correspondents to further strengthen our Asian editorial coverage for millions of viewers worldwide,” she said.
Through her managerial responsibility for CNN’s correspondents and newsgathering teams across nine Asia Pacific editorial operations, she has overseen a remarkable six months of coverage since the turn of the year, from the devastating Japan earthquake and tsunami in March, ongoing unrest in the Middle East to the death of Osama bin Laden.
Lee has also been instrumental in the launch of a new Asia Primetime programming line-up, a new Hong Kong-based show called News Stream and four weeks of extended regional coverage in Malaysia, South Korea, Japan and Indonesia.
Further programming initiatives under her tenure have included taking Hong Kong-based programmes to Beijing, Delhi, Mumbai and Seoul while from the world of business she managed the launch of a new weekday business program from Hong Kong, ‘World Business Today’.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
