News Broadcasting
Times Now reigns supreme during election season
Mumbai: Reaffirming its supremacy in the English News channel category, Times Now dominated the Lok Sabha election season with a commanding 31 per cent market share (Source: BARC| 10L+| NCCS AB 22+ Males| Wk.16-23’24). With an extensive election reportage and curated programming, the channel surpassed its contemporaries by a significant market share of 32 per cent during the Counting week and an impressive 33 per cent market share during the prime-time slots. The comprehensive and engaging election coverage on Times Now, spearheaded by seasoned journalists and strategic content has solidified its position as the Election News Headquarters.
Continuing its undisputed leadership on Exit Poll Day, Times Now was the genre leader registering an astounding 48 per cent viewership share (Source: BARC| 10L+| NCCS AB 22+ Males| 1st June 2024, 5-11 pm).
Through the election season, Times Now consistently delivered unparalleled coverage with exclusive and engaging programming including Election Premier League, Public Manch, and National Debate driven by state-of-the-art studios, AI-led data analysis, high depth immersive graphics, exclusive interviews with top political leaders, innovative mobile studios, solidifying its position as the go-to choice for election coverage.
News Broadcasting
Senior media executive Madhu Soman exits Zee Media
Former Reuters and Bloomberg leader says he leaves with “no regrets” after brief stint at WION and Zee Business
NOIDA: Madhu Soman, a veteran of global newsrooms and media sales floors, has stepped away from Zee Media Corporation after a short stint steering business strategy for WION and Zee Business.
In a reflective LinkedIn note marking his departure, Soman said his time within the network’s corridors was always likely to be brief. “Some chapters close faster than expected,” he wrote, signalling the end of a nearly two-year spell in which he oversaw both editorial partnerships and commercial strategy.
Soman joined Zee Media in 2022 after more than a decade abroad with Reuters and Bloomberg, returning to India to take on the role of chief business officer for WION and Zee Business. His mandate was ambitious: bridge the newsroom and the revenue desk while expanding digital and broadcast reach.
During the stint, Zee Business reached break-even for the first time since its launch in 2005, while WION refreshed programming and strengthened its digital footprint across platforms such as YouTube and Facebook.
But Soman suggested the cultural fit proved uneasy. Describing himself as a “cultural misfit”, he hinted at deeper tensions between editorial instincts shaped in global newsrooms and the realities of India’s television news ecosystem.
Before joining Zee, Soman spent more than seven years at Bloomberg in Hong Kong as head of broadcast sales for Asia-Pacific, expanding the company’s news syndication business across several markets. Earlier, he held senior editorial roles at Reuters, overseeing online strategy in India and managing Reuters Video Services from London.
His career began in television and wire reporting, including a stint with ANI during the 1999 Kargil conflict, before moving into digital publishing as India’s internet media landscape took shape.
Now, after nearly three decades in broadcast and digital media, Soman is leaving Delhi NCR and returning to his hometown, Trivandrum.
Exhausted, he admits. But unbowed. And with one quiet line that sums up the journey: he didn’t sell his soul — because some things, after all, are not for sale.
