News Broadcasting
Journalism webinars – the BBC Way
New Delhi: During this unprecedented year, the BBC Indian Language Services have continued the trainee scheme in the form of webinars to train journalism and mass communication students who come from economically and socially marginalised communities of India. The ongoing webinars ‘Journalism – the BBC Way’ aim to educate the university students on BBC’s editorial standards of impartiality, accuracy, and factual journalism in six Indian languages: Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Punjabi, Telugu and Tamil.
BBC head of Indian Languages Rupa Jha said: ‘’As journalists, we must always scrutinise arguments, question consensus and hold power to account with consistency and due impartiality. As part of our training programme during the pandemic, we reach out to students of journalism from socially and economically marginalised groups to train them in the most important aspect of journalism, that is, impartiality.’’
Over the last two years, under this outreach programme a number of journalism graduates and postgraduates were selected and trained at BBC’s Delhi bureau by senior journalists and the production team. The trainees were given an opportunity to work in the newsroom with BBC’s Indian Language Services on multiple platforms such as TV, radio, digital and social media.
Some of the trainees from the previous two programmes described the BBC’s trainee programme as a “significant value addition” to their learning. Ananya Das, a trainee from the 2018-2019 scheme, who is now working full time with BBC Monitoring said, ‘’The trainee programme allowed me to be part of a world comprising complexity and opportunities, ideas, and new challenges to grapple with. It has sharpened my resilience and discipline to multitask in a dynamic environment. Remembering that listening is just as important as being heard, has helped me grow both personally and professionally.’’
Kailas Pimpalkar who contributes to the BBC Marathi Service said, “BBC is like a family to me where everyone is treated equally. Everyone works on the same platform. I came from a rural background and never thought that I would ever be able to work in an international organisation like the BBC. It is the epitome of journalism and I am privileged to work here. However, the training scheme offered by the organisation helped a lot in sharpening my journalistic and social media skills which would help me throughout my life.”
Chitvan Vinayak a trainee from the 2019-2020 Scheme who now works with another renowned media outlet said: “BBC Trainee programme was an edifying one since it helped in 360-degree skill development in the field of journalism. Learning from the best gave me a hand in mastering the ethics of journalism. The programme focussed on social media and that sharpened my skills. BBC provided me with a way to polish story writing skills and also learn the art of video presentation and its making. I got an opportunity to work with another organisation of national repute because of what I learned at BBC.”
News Broadcasting
Network18 Q4 revenue grows 9.7 per cent, EBITDA at Rs 30 crore
PAT improves to Rs 306.6 crore, margins steady amid cost pressures.
MUMBAI: Not all news is breaking, some of it is quietly improving. Network18 Media & Investments Limited appears to be doing just that, tightening losses and stabilising margins even as costs continue to weigh on the business. For FY26, the company reported revenue from operations of Rs 1,955.1 crore, up from Rs 1,896.2 crore in FY25, signalling modest top-line growth in a challenging media environment. Total income stood at Rs 1,978.2 crore, compared to Rs 1,913 crore a year earlier.
Profit after tax came in at Rs 306.6 crore for the year, a sharp turnaround from Rs 3,225.4 crore in FY25, largely reflecting the absence of large exceptional items that had inflated the previous year’s numbers. On a more comparable basis, the company’s operating performance showed signs of gradual stabilisation.
However, the quarterly picture remained under pressure. For the March quarter, Network18 reported a loss of Rs 53.1 crore, narrower than the Rs 98.1 crore loss in the same period last year, but still indicative of ongoing cost challenges.
Expenses continued to track high. Total expenses for FY26 stood at Rs 2,235.7 crore, up from Rs 2,197.8 crore in FY25. Key cost heads included operational expenses of Rs 765.9 crore, employee benefits of Rs 475.9 crore, and marketing, distribution and promotional spends of Rs 427.1 crore, underlining the continued investment required to sustain reach and engagement.
At an operating level, margins remained under strain. Operating margin stood at 2.33 per cent for FY26, marginally higher than 1.77 per cent in FY25, while net profit margin remained negative at -13.02 per cent, though improved from -14.89 per cent.
On the balance sheet, total assets rose to Rs 8,957.6 crore as of 31 March 2026, from Rs 8,317.5 crore a year earlier. Equity strengthened to Rs 4,958.7 crore, while borrowings increased to Rs 3,112.8 crore, reflecting a higher reliance on debt to support operations.
Cash flows told a mixed story. While financing activities generated Rs 83.9 crore, operating cash flow remained negative at Rs -24 crore, highlighting ongoing pressure on core cash generation. Cash and cash equivalents, however, improved to Rs 33.9 crore from Rs 1.8 crore.
The numbers point to a company in transition growing revenues, trimming losses, but still grappling with structural cost pressures. In a sector where scale often comes at a price, Network18 seems to be inching towards balance, one quarter at a time.
