News Broadcasting
CNN to hold ceremony for YJA on 14 December
MUMBAI: CNN International will host the fifth annual award ceremony of CNN Young Journalist Award (CNN YJA) on 14 December 2007. The awards will be given away at a gala ceremony in New Delhi. CNN YJA is the first of its kind award to recognise quality journalism among young media professionals in India and Pakistan.
This year, the awards have five categories: the CNN Young Journalist Award for Print/Online and Television, CNN Journalist Award, CNN Photo Journalist Award, CNN Citizen Journalist Award and CNN Aspiring Journalist Award.
The first three categories target young, professional/working journalists in India and Pakistan. CNN Citizen Journalist Award was instituted to encourage citizens of India [who are not professional journalists] to play an active role in the process of collecting and disseminating news and information on issues that have an impact on society. Whereas CNN Aspiring Journalist Award offers a platform to students of journalism in India to exhibit their talent in the field of journalism. A novel feature this year has been the large number of entries from both India & Pakistan for the CNN Photo Journalist Award and the CNN Journalist Award – a special award included this year to celebrate 60th year of India and Pakistan’s Independence.
As in previous years, CNN YJA, once again, received an overwhelming response from journalists in both countries. The winners of CNN YJA 2007 would be announced in the presence of CNN New Delhi bureau chief Phil Turner and CNN International reporter and producer Mallika Kapur.
All the entries had to go through a stringent selection process. The entries for CNN YJA, CNN Journalist Award and CNN Photo Journalist Award categories have been evaluated by a jury panel. For the CNN Aspiring Journalist Award, the entrants were asked to submit an essay in 1,000 words on the topic: ‘Has the media broadened its reach only to narrow its focus’.
Ten best finalists will be judged in an on-the-spot contest, a day prior to the awards’ evening. For the CNN Citizen Journalist Award, the executive jury chose the winner from the images/video files broadcast on CNN-IBN, between 1 January, 2007 and 30 September, 2007.
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.
