News Broadcasting
RSS activists attack Aaj Tak, Headlines Today office in New Delhi
NEW DELHI: The offices of Aaj Tak and Headlines Today at Jhandewalan area in Central Delhi were attacked by alleged Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) activists today.
Hundreds of suspected RSS members ransacked the private news channel office of the TV Today Group, smashed glasspanes and destroyed furniture, even as some police persons were present.
It is learnt that the attack was triggered by the Headlines Today sting operation suggesting saffron leaders’ involvement in Malegaon and Ajmer blasts. The report, which was aired on Thursday, invited the ire of the Hindu activists.
In the report, the channel had featured Bharatiya Janata Party leader BL Sharma, who made inflammatory remarks against a particular community. The story had said saffron leaders being involved in Malegaon and Ajmer blasts. Others who were put on dock were RSS leader Indresh Kumar, Delhi-based endocrinologist Dr RP Singh and Sharad Kunthe, head of the chemistry department at Pune’s Wadia College.
Headlines Today “had exposed how elements in the saffron brigade had plotted Vice-President Hamid Ansari’s assassination and attacks on minorities and had links with the Mecca Masjid and Ajmer Sharif bomber,” says a report in India Today.
The incident has been condemned by the Editors Guild, senior journalists including Rajdeep Sardesai and Upendra Rai, and several political leaders. RJD leader Laloo Prasad Yadav said the issue would be raised in Parliament in the session beginning later this month.
The attack has been condemned by the Information & Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni and media fraternity. Soni said the matter would be inquired into.
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: 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.
