News Broadcasting
Vartha Prabhatham stays a favourite of Keralites
MUMBAI: Vartha Prabhatham, the morning show by Asianet News has topped the charts in popularity ratings with a total viewership of 54 per cent in week 39 of the year and maintaining an average of 43 per cent throughout the year.
The show gives a brief idea to the audience about the major news events which is to be expected on the day and also carries stories which are soft in nature. People also get the updates related to the entertainment industry, upcoming films in Mollywood, Kollywood, Bollywood etc. The “Innariyan” segment details the major events happening in the state of Kerala on the day. A short chat with celebrities and those people who have stood out with their exceptional talent or achievement is also carried in the bulletin under the segment “Athidhi”.
The casual look of the backdrop and the readers greeting the audience with a cup of tea gives a pleasant feel and a fresh start for the day to the viewers.
The channel had earlier scaled heights by becoming the first news channel to beat the general entertainment channels (GEC) in popularity ratings by securing 843 GRP points on week 28 of the year.
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: 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.
