News Broadcasting
Mirrow Now aims to engage viewers in 34-36 urban cities
MUMBAI: A short-term void is being turned into an opportunity. Times Network seems to be upping its news game with more, distinct and differentiated channels, creating more intellectual properties, with the involvement of the most critical stakeholder – the viewer. Strategies and leadership at the network have seen a significant change in the last few months which has enabled them to achieve sustainable growth despite growing competition in the news space.
With Mirror Now reaching to 3,65,000 viewers per week in five weeks and Times Now leading the general news category week by week, the nation’s most affluent television network is geared up for another successful year. “Mirrow Now’s aim is to involve and engage the viewers in the 34-36 urban cities with a million-plus population in India,” Times Network MD and CEO MK Anand told indiantelevision.com.
Mirror Now, which claims to have a relative percentage growth of 6% since its launch on 22 March, is committed to making lives better for the people of the nation each day. Being a channel which takes up the consumer’s issues and discussing and analysing government policies which directly impact the common man, it is differentiated by its content. “Discussing the everyday issues of life, from crime and corruption to roads and traffic congestion and to grave issues such as women’s safety, Mirror Now aims to demand accountability from powers that can drive improvement,” Mirrow Now editor Faye D’Souza said. Her distinctive news reporting with the ability to simplify complex concepts with ease has made every news story impactful.
With an aim to mobilise and actualise the plans, Mirror Now takes into consideration the citizen’s opinion to look for an opportunity for action and ensures accountability at all levels. Mirror Now is striving to work on the agenda for change and works towards giving better living conditions to the citizens of India. “We would actually track how much time it takes for an office-goer driving from Churchgate or Bandra to reach his home, say, in Borivali — and bring this to the notice of the concerned authorities,” D’Souza said.
The channel has already started making the difference that it set out to make with a lot of results driven through impactful stories on Mirror Now. As viewers relate to stories that have closely have a bearing on them — physically and emotionally, Mirror Now is aiming to reach the ideal average viewership per week required to stabilise a channel (4,50,000 – 5,00,000). To a question on a general lack of rigorous follow-ups of news stories, Anand reassured that all the critical stories were being definitely followed up.
Discussing threadbare and questioning policies that impact people at the city-level and taking up the real-life issues of the common man is uncommon on a national English channel. Mirror Now seems to be doing just that.
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News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
