News Broadcasting
Paramount ropes in former NBC Universal hand Huntsberry as COO
MUMBAI: The Viacom-owned film studio Paramount Pictures has announced the appointment of Frederick Huntsberry as its chief operating officer. In his new role at Paramount, Huntsberry will be responsible for worldwide strategic planning and operations for the studio.
Huntsberry comes to Paramount after 12 years with General Electric Co., the parent company of NBC, where he served as NBC Universal Television Distribution EVP as well as Universal Pictures interim president and COO.
“With Frederick’s unique experiences and skills, I know he will be a tremendous addition to our management team as we continue to lead Paramount to a bright future,” Paramount chairman and chief executive Brad Grey has been quoted in media reports as saying.
Paramount has also announced the expansion of the profile of its president Rob Moore. Moore, who had been in charge of marketing and distribution, will now take charge of its home entertainment and digital operations as well.
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.
