News Broadcasting
Day Two: Chillingly cold but deals warm up
CANNES: Day Two of MipTV in Cannes was unpredictably wet, soggy and well chillingly cold.. Sales of umbrellas simply soared as savvy roadside touts exploited the opportunity hawking cheap Chinese umbrellas for as much as 15 Euros. And the takers were many as the coats were brought out and everyone pulled up their coat collars to prevent the chill from getting to their bones. Needless to say sentiment for all those concerned was dampened.
Inside the Palais de Festivals, the Americans and Canadians were celebrating with business on the upswing. According to John Helmrich an old timer attendee of MipTV, it has been a better MipTV this year than last. The previous editions were hit by the Sars scare and the Iraqi invasion. Attendance among US and Canadian companies is up and deals are being struck thanks to weakening dollar against the Euro.
Zee TV meanwhile announced that group company Zee Institute of the Creative Arts Telefilms has bagged a $five million animation content development deal from Mallard TV, a television channel in Scotland.
The keynote address delivered by BBC director television Jana Bennett had her reiterating the importance of public service broadcasting in an era of commercial and digital television. “I see a special place for publicly funded broadcasters to be the creative engine of television. The freedom from commercial pressures is a privilege and one we must not be afraid to capitalize on.”She however cautioned that the review of the BBC’s royal charter that is “currently underway will be crucial to determining the kind of television in the future.”
She however pointed out that the “BBC will be more important in the digital interactive world – not less in providing information rich factual programmes, rib tickling comedy, impartial trusted news with an international perspective, and home grown drama and entertainment enhance by interactivity and with content increasingly powered by our own viewers.”The evening belonged to the finals of WorldBest, a contest to decide on the final winner from against the 11 winners of Star Academy – a format show created by Endemol – from various countries. The glitzy ceremony held at the Palais de Festival theatre was well attended by locals but was marred by some glitches, especially its audio which failed at crucial moments when select competitors were singing.
The winner eventually was a 21-year-old French singer, Elodie Frege of France’s Star Academy, who beat out contestants from 10 countries, including a Canadian duo. Wearing a red satin dress, she crooned Celine Dion’s S’il Suffisait d’Aimer (If Loving Was Enough). To the surprise of all watching the finale, both Lionel Richie and Phil Collins came out and dished their stuff solo and with the young performers.
The second-place winners were Wilfred and Marie-Elaine of Canada. Together, they sang Bonnie Tyler’s Total Eclipse of the Heart, with parts of the song translated into French. Mexico’s Darina descended from a swing in a sleek turquoise dress and sang Mariah Carey’s song Hero for a third-place finish.
The evening was young at 11 pm and a select few made their way to the Tantra bar in Cannes behind the Noga Hilton for Fashion TV’s private gig. The place was rocking with FTV promoter Michel Adam surrounded by a bevy of beauties and the liquor flowing easy and the music being mainly hip hop.
News Broadcasting
WITT Summit 2026 concludes in New Delhi
Babar Azam’s comical diving attempt goes viral as league introduces anti-dew measures.
MUMBAI: The WITT Summit just wrapped up with enough big ideas to fill a policy playbook because when India’s leaders, thinkers and icons gather under one roof, even the conversations hit sixes. The eighth edition of TV9 Network’s flagship What India Thinks Today (WITT) Summit 2026 concluded on Saturday after two days of dynamic discussions at its New Delhi venue. India’s largest multi-domain public policy and culture summit brought together political leaders, policymakers, sports icons, artists and technology innovators to examine the forces shaping contemporary India and its global standing.
Prime minister Narendra Modi delivered the keynote address on the theme “India and the World” for the third consecutive year. In a wide-ranging speech, he addressed the ongoing conflict in West Asia, calling for restraint and compassion while highlighting India’s continued development trajectory despite global turmoil.
The summit featured candid conversations with state leaders. Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy articulated a people-first governance model and contrasted it with other development approaches. Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav declared that Left-wing extremism had been effectively eliminated in his state and highlighted preparations for the upcoming Kumbh Mela. Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann defended his government’s record, citing the closure of 19 toll plazas and creation of the Sadak Suraksha Force. Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar expressed confidence in Congress prospects in Assam and addressed recent allegations against him.
On geopolitics and national security, Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia outlined India’s ambition to become a builder of trusted digital infrastructure for the world, citing the rapid 5G rollout and village-level 4G connectivity.
Cricket received significant attention. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly praised player freedom and trust as hallmarks of great leadership and named MS Dhoni as the greatest captain due to his World Cup successes. India women’s team bowling coach Aavishkar Salvi credited the BCCI and Women’s Premier League for building a pipeline of world-class talent behind the team’s recent ODI World Cup triumph.
The summit also hosted the inaugural AI² Awards 2026, celebrating the convergence of human creativity and machine intelligence in storytelling and content creation. Poet and kathavachak Kumar Vishwas delivered a nuanced take on India’s concept of Dharma and criticised the recent arrest of an 80-year-old Shankaracharya. Veteran lyricist Sameer Anjaan and storyteller Neelesh Misra reflected on changing music trends and artistic responsibility in the wake of a recent controversy involving Nora Fatehi.
In a country where conversations often run as deep as the Ganges, the WITT Summit proved once again that when leaders, thinkers and storytellers come together, the real winner is public discourse lively, layered and refreshingly unafraid to tackle the big questions shaping India’s tomorrow.
