News Broadcasting
USA Network to take WWE to the next level with film based initiative
MUMBAI: American cable network USA Network is looking to build on its relationship with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).
The network is unveiling plans to develop and produce action movies aimed at the WWE audience.
USA Network president Bonnie Hammer said, “The return of WWE to USA has been a knockout for both parties. We are looking forward to building and expanding on our audience as well as the Raw fan base with high impact, adrenaline-fueled, larger-than-life action just like they’ll find in the ring.”
One film is called Hunting Rabbets. This features Jack and Bobby Rabbet, hard luck brothers who operate a failing repossession business. When Bobby neglects to pay their axes, a secret
government agency confronts the Rabbets with an ultimatum: go to prison, or work off the debt.
Now, as unofficial government employees, Jack and Bobby must use their repossession skills to search America for classified items the government cannot admit it has lost.
Another film is called Crush. Bodyguards have to be tough, and Able ‘Crush’ Cross was one of the toughest. But the business of protection is a hard one. Forced out for not being a team player, Crush makes a living as bouncer at Los Angeles hot spots. However, Crush is pulled back into the bodyguard business when he is hired by a wealthy CEO who fears for the life of his daughter. This is an original film by Phoef Sutton (Analyze This, Boston Legal).
In The Last Tough Guy, the protagonist Jack Cooper is one of the best stunt men in Hollywood. Unfortunately, his hard-drinking lifestyle and gruff demeanour have left him with few jobs and fewer friends. When Jack witnesses the death of his former mentor, producer Rudy Solomon, he goes to the police, who prove uncooperative.
Reconnecting with his former flame (who happens to be Rudy’s estranged daughter), Jack decides to take matters into his own hands. As he tracks down Rudy’s killers and bring them to justice.
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:Â 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.
