News Broadcasting
India Today launches 3C to spark calmer, kinder conversations
NEW DELHI: India Today has kicked off a new experiment in public dialogue with the launch of The 3C Project, an X-first series built on candour, compassion and constructive conversation. At a time when polarisation often drowns out nuance, 3C steps in with a quieter promise: to help people talk with each other, not at each other.
The format is simple yet refreshing. Instead of heated debates and echo-chamber arguments, 3C brings people with sharply different lived experiences into one space to listen, question and search for overlap. From caste and religion to youth crime and digital exposure, the idea is to spotlight real stories and encourage real understanding. Disagreement is not a dead end here; it is the doorway to insight.
The first episode, released last week on X, tackled one of India’s most fraught subjects: caste reservation. The discussion drew a young, digitally active audience and pushed everyday perspectives into the national spotlight.
To widen the circle, India Today hosted a live X Space on 8 December at 9 pm with managing editor Marya Shakil. Over a thousand participants tuned in to share views, challenge assumptions and test their own. Within minutes, the recording crossed 200 replays. Marya summed up the spirit of the initiative by saying, “If you listen to disagree, not to dismiss, this space can rise above noise and shape how India thinks about caste, opportunity and power.”
The conversation later flowed seamlessly into her nightly show Newstrack at 10 pm, blending digital voices with primetime television and signalling a stronger two-way bridge between audience and newsroom.
With 3C, India Today reinforces its push for informed, inclusive and solutions-focused discourse across platforms. Each episode will spotlight a topic of national relevance and inspire audiences to think, pause and participate.
For a country used to arguments that heat up faster than they illuminate, 3C aims to offer something different: a space where India can talk, listen and think together.
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.
