News Broadcasting
Times Now journos attacked by Samajwadi Party workers for trying to report on child’s death in celebratory firing
NEW DELHI: A reporter of Times Now Samia and video journalise Mukesh Kumar were attacked by Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Nahid Hasan and his aides in Shamli district of Uttar Pradesh on Monday (8 February) morning.
The duo was threatened with dire consequences and were asked to delete the video footage of their interview with the SP leader. The two were covering a report on the accidental killing of an eight-year old boy by Samajwadi Party workers in a celebratory firing on 7 February.
The reporter was told by some workers surrounding the politician that “we first shoot and then answer questions.”
The reporter and cameraperson were held captive and misbehaved with and all the footage was forcefully deleted.
It is learnt that following the intervention of the party’s top brass, the journalists were released.
Times Now video journalist Kumar said, “They took my camera away and they also tried to remove the memory chip. I was asked to delete the footage, for this they even called their own photographer. They told me if you don’t give the camera you know what we will do. Then their own photographers took my camera and deleted the footage we had shot,” said Mukesh.
Times Now reporter Samia narrated, “They abused and threatened us of dire consequences. They took away Mukesh and I stayed back in the car. Some of them then asked me to join them in the room and used derogatory language.”
The incident happened in Shamli district, where a politician had fired a gun in celebration after the victory of the party candidate in local body polls at Kairana town in the district. The bullet hit a child sitting in his mother’s lap on a rickshaw.
Later, Bharatiya Janata Party condemned the incident and regretted that the administration was yet to take action against errant SP workers.
“Assault on mediapersons in Balrampur and Shamli indicate that SP men are attacking them in a planned manner,” BJP spokesperson Vijay Bahadur Pathak said.
News Broadcasting
Mihir Bhatt appointed as chief content officer at News18 Studios
The media veteran brings two decades of experience across television, digital and radio to one of India’s biggest broadcast networks, Disney+ Hotstar, Discovery+
NEW DELHI: Network18 has a new strategist in the building. Mihir Bhatt, one of Indian media’s more versatile operators, has joined News18 Studios as chief content officer, stepping into a role that will see him shape content strategy, build multi-platform properties and drive brand partnerships across the network.
Bhatt brings more than two decades of experience spanning television, digital and radio, with a track record of doing something rare in Indian media: combining editorial ambition with hard commercial results. At Times Network, where he served as managing editor and chief business officer of Times Influence, he built one of the industry’s more respected content studios, launching marquee properties such as the India Economic Conclave, the Times Now Summit and Leaders of Tomorrow. He also pushed the network into premium OTT territory through tie-ups with Disney+ Hotstar and Discovery+.
His resume stretches well beyond the studio. Bhatt has led Global Investor Summits for multiple state governments, worked alongside the World Economic Forum and played a pivotal role in launching the Indian Pickleball League. Earlier, as editor of Zee Business, he pioneered investor education initiatives that are still cited as industry benchmarks.
At News18 Studios, Bhatt will report to chief executive S Shivakumar and will oversee the studios execution vertical alongside revenue verticals covering emerging markets and campaigns. Sidharth Saini, Hemanth Kumar and Nimar Sarkaria will work under him.
Rahul Joshi, managing director and editor-in-chief of Network18 Group, made the announcement in an internal communication. “Mihir’s ability to build enduring brands, foster strategic partnerships and navigate a rapidly evolving media landscape will be instrumental as we continue to strengthen our position and explore new avenues of growth in the Studios business,” Joshi said.
In a media industry lurching between disruption and reinvention, Network18 has bet on a man who has spent two decades thriving in exactly that chaos. Whether he can do it again, at greater scale, is the question worth watching.
