News Broadcasting
Despite Iraqi ban on two reporters, Al-Jazeera vows to stay course
MUMBAI: It’s not just hack attacks on its website that it has to confront. Al-Jazeera – “the mouthpiece of the Baghdad regime” (as the US-British establishments like to call it) – has run afoul of Saddam Hussein. Two correspondents of the popular Arabic television network have been issued marching orders.
Reacting to the development Al-Jazeera said today it would continue to cover the war on Iraq. The Qatar-based station had earlier said that none of its eight correspondents would report from Iraq after the Iraqi authorities expelled a colleague and asked another reporter to stop working.
Al-Jazeera however said during a news bulletin on Thursday that it would continue to broadcast live and taped events – including news conferences by Iraqi officials and air strikes on Iraqi cities – without any commentary.
The network said the Iraqi authorities gave no reason for its decision. CNN’s reporters were also expelled from Baghdad last week. The Guardian has however, reported that Al-Jazeera drew the ire of the Baghdad establishment after its reporters tried to interview Iraqi citizens away from the “supervision” of government minders.
Meanwhile, hacked off the Internet by “patriotic” Americans, Al-Jazeera said on Wednesday it was launching a new service to send its news to mobile phones.
It will beam news alerts in both Arabic and English to mobile phones around the world. An al-Jazeera spokesman said the new mobile service that launched on Wednesday would be available in 130 countries.
Al-Jazeera is the only international network with correspondents in the southern city of Basra and the northern city of Mosul. It is one of the most widely watched networks in the Arab world, with at least 35 million viewers.
The network, which has been criticised by the United States and Britain for airing pictures of slain US and British troops, said the Iraqi Information Ministry had asked its correspondent Tayseer Alouni to leave the country and another reporter, Diyar al-Omari in Baghdad, to remain off air.
Alouni gained international renown for covering the US-led war on Afghanistan for eight-year-old Al-Jazeera, which made its name by airing statements by Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda members after the September 11 attacks on the United States.
Alouni was one of a few international correspondents allowed to operate under the Taliban.
Many Arab viewers regard the network’s Iraq war coverage as more comprehensive and balanced than Western media reports.
US and British officials, however, say its coverage is biased. And toeing the US establishment line and gald to do its “patriotic chore” is the New York Stock Exchange which has banned two Al-jazeera business correspondents from reporting from the because of its so-called “irresponsible” reporting.
Asked by UK’s Radio 5 Live to respond to the accusation by the British home secretary, David Blunkett, that Al-Jazeera had close links with the Baghdad regime, a company spokesperson said: “I think it’s quite ironic then that the Iraqis are kicking out one of their own.”
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.
