News Broadcasting
DD News channel gets EC nod
NEW DELHI: The Election Commission today gave the go ahead to pubcaster Doordarshan to proceed on schedule with the launch of its proposed news channel.
According to sources in the information and broadcasting ministry, a formal letter to this effect will be issued this evening.
The election commission had earlier sought clarifications from Prasar Bharati on whether the relaunch of DD News on the eve of assembly elections in four states would breach the model poll of conduct, considering that the channel’s new avtaar and upkeep would be financed by the government.
According to the model code, the government cannot take decisions that may seem to be amounting to handing out sops to the general populace or highlighting its own achievements. This temporary ban starts from the time election dates are announced by the EC and remains in effect till the whole poll process is over.
Prasar Bharati had maintained that the decision to relaunch DD News was taken by its board on 11 July this year and that the file concerned had been moving between Prasar Bharati and the I&B ministry since January. Also, the pubcaster had argued that if the EC objected to a new channel as breaching the model poll conduct, nothing would anyway stop it from increasing the news bulletins and current affairs programming on DD’s other channels.
Meanwhile, Aaj Tak’s political editor Deepak Chaurasia also took up the post as consulting editor to DD News over the last weekend. With all hurdles along the way cleared, DD News’ relaunch now appears to be a certaintly.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
