News Broadcasting
Enter a den of crime with BBC World Service’s ‘The Lazarus Heist’ podcast
NEW DELHI: BBC World Service is making its presence felt in the podcast domain with an original true crime series, The Lazarus Heist. It tells the true story of an attempted $1 billion hack, which investigators say was carried out by a secretive ring of elite North Korean hackers. While it could be the plot of a Hollywood movie, this dangerous group of hackers caused worldwide panic that was only too real.
Nicknamed the Lazarus Group, they broke into the digital vaults of Bangladesh Bank (the country’s central bank), waiting a year before they carried out their attack. They laundered money around the world – including through casinos in the Philippines. It’s claimed they were trying to bring huge amounts of money back to Kim Jong-un’s secretive state.
Before then, they are accused of being behind the hack of Sony Pictures Entertainment – exposing emails between employees, salary details and plans for new movies. It cost Sony $15m and its co-chairperson her job. This is a story of alleged state-sponsored hacking and theft on a truly global scale. North Korea says it “has nothing to do at all” with cyber threats or money laundering and says the accusations are American attempts to tarnish its image.
The Lazarus Heist is presented by cybercrime investigative journalist Geoff White and Pulitzer-nominated veteran foreign correspondent and world renowned North Korea expert Jean Lee. White has been investigating the underworld of digital crime for years, while Lee has extensive experience of reporting from inside North Korea.
This major new release will initially run for 10 episodes, released weekly. The Lazarus Heist is available on BBC Sounds and on most other podcast apps around the world. Episode one is released on 19 April 2021. Visualised episodes will be available on the BBC World Service YouTube channel.
The BBC produces some of the world’s most popular and acclaimed podcasts, including three of the top ten most-listened-to shows around the globe.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
