News Broadcasting
DD Bangalore Kendra to spruce up primetime
BANGALORE: Having noticed a slump in its post 7 pm primetime ratings, DD Bangalore Kendra is now gearing up to strengthen the band with more variety shows and popular programmes.
The kendra has already got permission from Prasar Bharati to telecast approximately 270 episodes for the period between 5 September 2004 and 3 March 2005.
Serials, tele-films, tribal dances and history, and documentaries based on reputed Kannada works will be presented in the primetime band.
DD Kendra Bangalore director R Venkateswarlu told Indiantelevision.com, “On analysing we found that our primetime ratings were weak after 7 pm. So now the Prasar Bharati has permitted us to telecast approximately 270 episodes from 5 September to 3 March. This will be mainly serials, tele-films, tribal dances and history, and documentaries based on reputed Kannada works.”
Venkateswarlu said that the kendra would slot these shows on DD1 at 6.30 pm from Sunday to Thursday and on the satellite channel Chandana in the primetime band of 8 pm – 9 pm to compete with private satellite channels.
“On Sunday evening, we plan a programme on exclusive classical short stories named Katha Sagar, while Darpana that showcases serials and documentaries will air on weekdays. We are also reviving production of our daily serial Adachane Gagi Kshamisi, he added.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
