News Broadcasting
iTV Network appoints Uma Prabhu as group editor
MUMBAI: iTV Network that publishes The Sunday Guardian, India’s finest Sunday newspaper has announced the appointment of Uma Prabhu as the Group Editor.
Uma has a wealth of leadership experience of over three decades in the news broadcasting. She has a standout track record, result-oriented approach and has a deep understanding of news ecosystem.
Uma was, until recently, the Group Editor of Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL). She has previously held various senior executive positions with organisations of repute. She has held a range of roles and her responsibilities and portfolios have grown: Correspondent with Stardust, Reporter with The Daily, Senior Reporter with The Times of India, Chief Editor with Popular Prakashan; Editor at Education Times, Group Editor with TOI and as Consultant with Al Sayegh Group of Abu Dhabi.
In her new role at iTV Network, she will focus on writing articles at The Sunday Guardian, creating content for education, skill development, women affairs, events and IPs for iTV Network channels and its digital platforms.
Elaborating on the vision that Uma aims to follow in her new role, she said, “It is a tremendous honour and a privilege to have been entrusted with this new role. iTV Network is one of journalism’s great institutions, with an enormously talented staff.
Speaking on Uma’s new role, Kartikeya Sharma, Founder and Promoter of iTV Network, said, “I’m delighted to welcome Uma into the iTV Network fold. She brings a wealth of experience and a strategic thinking to our publishing. Her flair, intelligence and editorial instincts will be a terrific addition to our brilliant editorial team and bolster our list even further.”
Uma holds a post-graduate degree in Management (from NIMS) and Journalism (from University of Pune). She holds a Bachelor of Science degree from Karnataka University and a diploma in Training and Development from Indian Society of Training and Development, New Delhi.
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.
