News Broadcasting
Thrilling expedition with Sony BBC Earth’s January premieres
Mumbai: Starting the new year with renewed vigour and anticipation, Sony BBC Earth brings in an interesting line-up of premieres for its viewers. Adding to the promise of making viewers feel alive by offering a fresh perspective on knowledge and adventure, the channel is premiering ‘World’s Most Dangerous Roads’, ‘Ancient Powers’, and ‘Spy in the Ocean’.
‘World’s Most Dangerous Roads’ takes viewers on a virtual expedition along with six British celebrities as they navigate the planet’s most treacherous highways, awe-inspiring landscapes, and captivating characters. The show guarantees an adrenaline rush and the thrill of a lifetime. With ‘Ancient Powers’ viewers can journey through time as they unravel the secrets concealed within ancient monuments and landmarks. It is a remarkable story of the social, technological, and physical challenges five powerful civilizations faced in their battle for survival and domination of the ancient world. Whereas ‘Spy in the Ocean’ takes people to an extraordinary underwater spy mission. With state-of-the-art hidden cameras, the show offers unprecedented perspectives on the ingenious creatures that call the ocean home. A new secret is unveiled of ocean life, into the heart of the underwater world.
Watch ‘Ancient Powers’ on Saturday and Sunday at 8 pm from the 13 Jan, ‘World’s Most Dangerous Roads’ on Monday to Friday at 10 pm from the 15 Jan, and ‘Spy in the Ocean’ premiering on the 22 Jan at 12 pm and 9 pm from Monday to Thursday.
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.
