News Broadcasting
NewsX-JankiBaat exit poll report captures accurate seat projections for elections in the northeast
MUMBAI: The NewsX-JankiBaat Exit Poll for Tripura, Nagaland and Meghalaya Assembly Elections 2018 delivered the most credible survey results for the much-anticipated assembly elections in the northeastern states. Each of the three states has a 60-member assembly and the polls have been one of the most closely-watched political battles in the region this year. The survey not only managed to successfully represent the trends but were remarkably close to the actual results.
The NewsX-JankiBaat Exit Poll for the Tripura Elections 2018 had predicted that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura alliance (BJP-IPFT) will bag 35 to 45 seats, with the ruling Left front predicted to grab 14 to 23 seats and the Congress, none. The BJP-IPFT managed to grab a total of 43 seats in the state, dethroning the Left that lagged way behind with just 16 seats and the Congress left high and dry with no seats at all.
In Nagaland, NewsX survey showed the BJP-Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party alliance (BJP-NDPP) winning 27 to 32 seats, followed by the Naga People’s Front (NPF) with 20 to 25 seats, Congress with 0 to 2 seats and others with 5 to 7 seats. The exit polls represented the election trends accurately once again with the BJP-NDPP, NPF, Congress and others grabbing 28, 29, 0 and 2 seats, respectively.
In Meghalaya, the NewsX-JankiBaat Exit Poll predicted the National People’s Party (NPP) would win 23 to 27 seats with the Congress likely to grab 13 to 17, BJP 8 to 12 and others 2 to 6 seats. The exit polls represented the election trends accurately once again with the BJP, NPP, Congress, others grabbing 8, 19, 21 and 11 seats, respectively.
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
