News Broadcasting
Pak body clears 53 foreign TV channels
MUMBAI: The Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) has identified 53 Foreign Satellite Channels for relay distribution through cable TV network operations in Pakistan. These channels have been identified in consultation with public and various associations of CTV operators in Pakistan, the APP news agency has reported.
Despite the enormous demand Indian satellite channels have in Pakistan, Star Plus, Sony Entertainment Television, Zee TV and the like continue to be off the list though. This is principally due to the hostile political climate that exists between the two neighbours.
PEMRA also announced that the public has till 20 November to make any presentations regarding the list it has issued.
The foreign satellite channels in the list are:
Quranic Channel from video, Iqra Channel, CNN, Saudi Channel 1and 2, BBC World, Sky News, Euro News, DW News, Al-Jazeera, Bloomberg, World Net, National Geographic Channel, Discovery, Animal Planet, Adventure One, Tech TV, Kuwait Space Channel, History, Travel, CNBC, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Fox Kids, Splash, KTV, Kermit, Super Sports-1, Super Sports-2, Super Sports-3, Super Sports-4, Super Sports-5, Star Sports, ESPN, Dubai Sports, Fox Sports, Sky Sports, Ten Sports, CCTV-3 (Chinese), CCTV-4 (Chinese), Bangladesh TV, Turkish TV, HBO, Star Movies, Star World, Hallmark, BBC Prime, LBC, Jam-e-Jam-1/IRAM- 1, Jam-e-Jam 2/IRIM 2, Dream TV, MATV, MBC and Disney Channel.
According to PEMRA, the CTV operators will be required to apply mosaicing to eliminate undesirable segments/ parts of the program or the parts of the program that are not in conformity with PEMRA program and advertisement codes from these eligible channels.
Meanwhile, a difficult edict to carry through is PEMRA’s clarification that it will be a punishable crime to cut the cable, interrupt the transmission or to damage the headend of any licensed cable operator. If such a ruling could be enforced, the system instituted would be of great benefit in India as the instances of rivals cutting cables are reportedly on the rise again.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
