News Broadcasting
CNN documenary ‘Beneath the Veil’ honoured by US National Press Club
CNN Productions Beneath the Veil has been awarded a Freedom of the Press Award by America’s National Press Club.
The documentary, created by Saira Shah, profiling life in Afghanistan under Taliban rule won one of the two Freedom of the Press awards given by the National Press Club. This marks the documentarys 13th honour since the programme aired last August in the US and elsewhere. The award will be given away on 22 July in Washington.
In Beneath the Veil, investigative journalist Saira Shah journeyed to her ancestral home of Afghanistan to look at life under the iron rule of the Taliban. With footage garnered from hidden cameras and unprecedented access, Shah provided a shocking view of the ruins of Kabul, the public executions and the forbidden underground network of women struggling to survive. From the frontlines to the secret classrooms, the execution grounds to the ruined gardens of Shahs fathers homeland, the film provides a searing and disturbing look into the Afghanistan under Taliban rule. The documentary was produced jointly by CNN Productions, Hardcash Productions and Channel 4.
The Freedom of the Press Award recognises members of the US and international news media who have promoted or helped protect the freedom of the press during the previous calendar year by publishing or broadcasting news. Judges weighed the risks involved to nominees, including loss of reputation, job and life as well as bodily harm, imprisonment and harm to family. Judges also looked at whether the nominees exercised commitment to the principles of free press, professionalism, ethical newsgathering practices, perseverance, ingenuity and personal integrity, says an official release.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
