News Broadcasting
Contentious issues are off limits for BBC journos
MUMBAI: The BBC has announced changes to its guidelines covering the circumstances in which BBC journalists, presenters and freelancers can write regular columns for newspapers and magazines.
The changes mean that no staff, or regular freelance journalists whose main profile or income comes from the BBC, will be able to write newspaper or magazine columns on current affairs or other contentious issues.
The new arrangements have been approved by the BBC governing board. However, current contracts in place mean that some columns will continue until the middle of next year. Articles on specific BBC programmes that are part of an overall press and publicity plan will be allowed, as will columns on non contentious issues and food, film or music reviews, or syndicated articles that appear first on BBC News online.
Freelance journalists whose main profile and income is not through the BBC will be exempt. Current staff and freelance contracts will not need amending. Senior news managers are already in discussion with the journalists affected, the majority of whom are staff employees.
BBC News director Richard Sambrook said: “Impartiality is an essential element to the BBC’s reputation and to our journalism. When our journalists write in papers it is seen as an extension of their work for the BBC. Yet columns and newspaper articles on controversial issues depend on expressing opinions to an extent which is often incompatible with the BBC’s impartiality. The audience’s trust in the independence of the BBC’s journalism on all subjects is something we cannot afford to compromise.”
The BBC producer guidelines dealing with conflict of interest will now be redrafted in line with the agreed changes.
News Broadcasting
Book Cricket gets a digital century on News18 amid T20 fever
Nostalgic classroom game revamped in English, Hindi plus Telugu on web and app.
MUMBAI: When the T20 World Cup fever hits fever pitch, News18 decides to flip the script straight back to the classroom. The digital news platform has revived the timeless schoolyard favourite Book Cricket as an interactive online game, perfectly timed to ride the cricket wave gripping fans across the globe. The reimagined Book Cricket ditches textbooks for smartphones, blending old-school nostalgia with modern gameplay. Once a sneaky recess pastime played by flicking book pages to score runs, the digital version now offers seamless fun for anyone craving a quick cricket fix between overs.
Available in English, Hindi and Telugu (with more languages planned across News18’s network), the game sits within the platform’s fast-growing gaming portfolio of over 20 titles, all built in-house. It joins event-driven hits like ‘Kursi Catcher’ and ‘Result Rewind’ during the 2025 Bihar Assembly Elections, plus festive specials such as ‘Durga’s Astras’ for Durga Puja and ‘Mouse Modak’ for Ganesh Chaturthi.
News18 Digital CEO Mitul Sangani said, “Gaming is a key pillar of our engagement strategy. At News18, we uniquely combine our newsroom agility with immersive gaming experiences. By blending credible content with interactive formats, we are creating meaningful engagement in an era defined by shrinking attention spans and evolving consumption habits.”
Select titles have expanded beyond News18.com to CNBC-TV18.com and Firstpost.com, reflecting the network’s push to deepen user interaction across platforms. The Book Cricket game is live now at https://www.news18.com/games/book-cricket/.
In a tournament where every boundary counts, News18’s digital Book Cricket proves the simplest games can still deliver the biggest smiles no syllabus required, just pure cricket joy one page-flip at a time.
