News Broadcasting
Times Now leadership continues, new launches notwithstanding, says MK Anand
MUMBAI: The past month or so has seen the noise levels in the English news television space reaching a crescendo with the launch of the Arnab Goswami-helmed Republic TV which has been grabbing all the media space.
We now turn the focus on The Times Network which has been the frontrunner in this space, with its Times Now and Mirror Now (earlier, Magic Bricks Now) channels. The MK Anand-headed news network says it is doing very well, the claims by Hotstar and Republic TV, notwithstanding.
The English news channel has been pushing the tag line “Times Now Next Level.” Led by one of the more familiar news anchors and just-promoted editor-in-chief Rahul Shivshankar, it is further planning to strengthen its leadership in the news space as the most cutting-edge, engaging, and dynamic news destination in India.
Shivshankar along with veteran news anchors Navika Kumar and Anand Narasimhan are setting the pace to position Times Now as “a channel that is constantly redefining and reinventing news broadcast in India, with‘Next Level,’ and giving its viewers an innovative, immersive and involved experience.”
The news network says that shows such as ‘The Newshour Debate’ and “India Upfront”- the relative percentage shares of which have reached 60 per cent and 41 per cent, respectively, in the current week – have been recording maximum viewership in prime time. Whether it’s the expose of the Hurriyat-ISI link or #MallyaGate, Times Now claims it has seen its average weekly impressions grow by 66 per cent in the 13-week period since mid-December and five per cent in relative share percentage – thus living up to its pledge and justifying its brand statement ‘Action Begins Here.’
Recently, it introduced The Morning NewsHour in Hindi in order to expand its viewer base. “The idea is to convert an educated non-English news watcher to become a viewer of English news,” Times Network CEO and MD MK Anand says.
Additionally, it has also rolled out its Times Now HD service in order to gives viewers a better viewing experience.
Its presence on social – through up-to the minute updates – has a humungous 15 million followers and its Times Now App is also beginning to get traction. Finally, Anand points out that its 3D VR newsroom and a virtual studio, enhances the viewers experience. With a 360-degree view, the network has been working on presenting the future of news reporting with a cutting-edge technology.
Concepts such as ‘Snapwrap’ and ‘Picture Book’ are helping viewers keep a track of all the news throughout the day at a glimpse with pictures onscreen. ‘News Day360’ gets five critical developments on the two biggest stories of the channel whereas ‘Top10’ gives 10 important highlights to the viewers while they are hooked on to the main story. From connecting with viewers on-air to online, Times Now, Anand says, is changing the face of newsroom reporting.
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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.
