News Broadcasting
Govt to set up coordination committee with news broadcasters
NEW DELHI: Clearly alarmed by the cascading effect of what it terms as the unending coverage of the Mumbai terror attacks, the Government today decided to set up a coordination committee with broadcasters to ensure some self-regulation to ensure balanced coverage.
In a meeting with broadcasters presided over by Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting and External Affairs Anand Sharma, the broadcasters were told that their continued coverage was having a negative effect and also affecting tourism and civil aviation sectors.
Sharma said that while the media in the country was free, it should exercise this independence with restraint and responsibility.
Interestingly, industrialist and hotel magnate Ratan Tata is understood to have informed the Minister that many people are canceling their bookings in the Taj Hotel in Mumbai because of the repetitive showing of the scenes of the Hotel tower burning.
Apart from I&B Secretary Sushma Singh and other officials of the Ministry, secretaries of the Ministries of Home (Internal Security), Tourism, and Civil Aviation were present.
The 20 broadcasters present included TV Today promoter Aroon Purie and Aaj Tak news director QW Naqvi, CNN-IBN and IBN7 editor-in-chief Rajdeep Sardesai, NDTV managing editor Barkha Dutt, India TV chairman Rajat Sharma and Zee Group’s Jawahar Goel.
The meeting comes even as news broadcasters are still to react on an advisory issued last week on the continual coverage of the terrorist attack in Mumbai.
In addition, notices had been issued to India TV and Aaj Tak to the effect that the channel’s coverage was creating public panic. India TV had thereafter sent its reply to the Ministry.
Aaj Tak had been accused of acting in a manner that may affect ’the integrity of the country’.
One broadcaster described the meeting as routine and said it was the third meeting in the last two weeks.
The news broadcasters still appear to be divided on their reaction to the Information and Broadcasting Ministry’s advisory to all news channels not to carry on with the coverage of the Mumbai attacks by showing the same clips which were now several days old and which only created panic.
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
