News Broadcasting
Network18 announces elevations and appointments within the group
MUMBAI: The media conglomerate Network18 announced important elevations and appointments within the group. The changes, which come into effect immediately, are also a consequence of the dynamics of integration which is the future of the news.
The group in its press statement said that the organisational changes are a move towards the new way in which the two arms of the news organisation—TV and digital—will work in collaboration.
Smriti Mehra is being elevated as chief operating officer-business news cluster, and will be responsible for the P&L of this cluster. She will also be responsible for the P&L of CNBC digital as well as display and focus revenue for the same.
Sohan Singh will be responsible for the display business of the business news cluster as well as English news and will report to Mehra. Preeti Sahni has been elevated as chief operating officer-Forbes India, with the responsibility of its P&L.
To drive TV-digital integration further, the group has mandated Azim Lalani, chief operating officer – brand solutions & convergence. He will also take additional charge of branded content for CNN-News18.
The group is bolstering its government business team, which has been led by Amit Tripathi. Amit will continue to be responsible for Hindi-regional and national channels.
To give a fillip to digital and vernacular, Abhinay Chauhan has joined the network recently and will be responsible for government revenues for language channels, digital, Forbes and AETN18.
For the non-sales part of the focus business, Siddharth Saini will be responsible for the English news, business news, and Forbes verticals as well as international business.
The group has appointed Sujeet Mishra to give additional thrust to the Hindi and regional languages focus business. Mishra. who has joined from the Zee group, will be responsible for non-sales backend of focus for the Hindi and language verticals, notably News18 India.
The above will report to Avinash Kaul for television news with a direct line to Puneet Singhvi for the digital business of the group.
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.
