News Broadcasting
CNN International Commercial makes new appointments in Asia Pacific
MUMBAI: CNN International Commercial (CNNIC) has made two new appointments in the Asia Pacific region, boosting its Content Sales and Partnerships team.
Kristin Burgham is the new director of CNN Content Sales and Partnerships based in Hong Kong, while Natsumi Sasaki is associate director of Networks and Content Distribution based in Japan.
Burgham is responsible for the growth and development of the network’s content sales business throughout the Asia Pacific region, with a focus on leveraging its broadcast and digital assets. Her role encompasses content sales and partnerships, and licensing deals. Sasaki is responsible for managing affiliate relationships and developing new content sales and licensing business partnerships in Japan.
CNN Content Sales and Partnerships vice president Greg Beitchman said, “CNNIC is actively investing in diversifying revenue streams and Content Sales and Partnerships is a critical component of this strategy. We are focused on obtaining greater value from existing intellectual property through syndication, expanding CNN’s footprint on digital, mobile and social platforms, and licensing the brand in exclusive partnerships. Kristin and Natsumi’s appointments come on the back of several significant wins in the region including the launch of CNN Philippines and CNN Indonesia. With Kristin and Natsumi on board in Asia we will be better placed to service our existing partners and develop new opportunities during what is a truly exciting, innovative time for CNN.”
Prior to CNN, Burgham was head of global sales for CJZ, Australian production company where she grew the sales and distribution business from the ground up. Before that, she led the global content sales team of SBS Australia, and was a senior sales manager for ABC Australia.
Before joining CNN, Sasaki was an account manager at Reuters News Agency, where she developed new revenue streams with major broadcasters and online publishers. Prior to Reuters, she spent three years at Nippon Television as an accountant working with multiple media outlets and broadcast service companies.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
