News Broadcasting
Nearly four million viewers go interactive for BBC’s Winter Olympics
MUMBAI: UK pubcaster the BBC has anounced that the Winter Olympics is one of BBC Sport’s most watched interactive television applications.
BBC states that 3.99 million digital satellite viewers have accessed the service making it the fourth most used application from BBC Sport compared to Summer Olympics 2004 – 9.0 million, Wimbledon 2005 – 4.4 million and the football World Cup 2002 – 4.0 million.
The Olympics are doing well on BBC Two, with coverage contributing an average audience of 2.2 million, 14.2 per cent share to the channel. Peak audiences so far have been 4.9 million for ice skating on 20 February, 4.5 million for the men’s skeleton, 4.4 million for the figure skating pairs, 4.2 million for the men’s luge, and 4 million for the opening ceremony.
Shelley Rudman’s silver medal for the UK in the women’s skeleton peaked at 3.4 million on 16 February and was the most watched channel at the time for the five minutes of the last few runs.
So far, the audience profile for the Winters is skewing slightly towards females (53 per cent), although share of viewing is slightly higher amongst men. The broadband AV streaming at bbc.co.uk/winterolympics is proving popular with an average of 150,000 page views each weekday.
There were almost as many page views accessed of the AV highlights of Rudman winning skeleton silver the day after it happened as the day itself. The value of on-demand highlights for those that missed it live is further demonstrated by the women’s snowboard cross, with 33,000 page views on Saturday – three times the number from the previous day.
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to host Kolkata Town Hall on Hooghly River
‘Bhalobasa Bengal Inspiring Bharat’ event on April 20 brings cultural icons, trailblazing women and leaders aboard a cruise to celebrate Bengal’s enduring influence.
MUMBAI: Bengal is about to make fresh waves on the Hooghly and this time the current is pure conversation. CNN-News18 is taking its iconic Town Hall format to the waters of the iconic Hooghly River on 20 April 2026 with a special edition titled ‘Bhalobasa Bengal – Inspiring Bharat’. The floating event will celebrate the state’s rich cultural legacy and how its ideas, creativity and spirit continue to shape the rest of the country.
The unique riverside setting draws on Bengal’s history as a cradle of reform, art and intellectual thought. The speaker line-up mirrors that diversity: cultural heavyweights Mithun Chakraborty and Sreenanda Shankar will share the stage with trailblazing “Devis” such as Tanya Sanyal (India’s first woman firefighter in aviation), Ipsita Chakraborty (Kolkata’s first woman bartender) and Reshma Nilofer Visalakshi (Nari Shakti awardee and marine pilot). Music will flow through the celebrated pianist-vocalist duo Sourendro and Soumyojit, while public life and governance will be represented by Smriti Irani, Leander Paes, Saira Shah Halim, Keya Ghosh, Rekha Patra, Roopa Ganguly and Babul Supriyo.
CNN-News18, editorial affairs director, Rahul Shivshankar, said the event honours voices that carry Bengal’s legacy forward. Smriti Mehra, CEO – English & Business News, Network18, added that Bengal’s stories resonate far beyond its borders, especially as the state heads into polls.
From the first woman to battle flames in the skies to legendary actors who shaped Indian cinema, the gathering promises a rich mix of inspiration, courage and candid dialogue. In a city where culture has always flowed as freely as the river itself, CNN-News18 is turning the Hooghly into a floating forum for ideas that matter.
Tune in on 20 April on CNN-News18, CTV and YouTube to catch Bengal’s heartbeat in full flow.
