Contemporary Indian Newsroom Debates

Lately, I've been glued to the television screen, due to different circumstances. My favorite genre? News, just like the scores of Indian men and many women wanting a slice of the 'current'. Controversies, policies, decisions, international affairs, sports and entertainment, the news is all-encompassing.  The newsroom debates on Indian Television have become sharper, more direct and testing. Surely, not everyone enjoys the format and content of newsroom debates these days. However, this kind of a format is here to stay. Why do I say so? Because the data says so. BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council India) data suggests that audience is consuming news in this new genre. 




The below-mentioned illustration (TRP ratings of prominent English news channels from 9th Dec 2017 to 15th Dec 2017) justifies the point presented earlier. 
Week 50: Saturday, 9th December 2017 to Friday, 15th December 2017
RankChannel NameWeekly Impressions (000s) sum
  Week 50
1Republic TV982
2Times Now864
3India Today Television462
4CNN News18329
5NDTV 24x7252
All India (U+R) : NCCS AB : Males 22+ Individuals, To get this data on your Twitter timeline, tweet with #BarcTweet Top 5 English News Channels
SOURCE: BARC Data -Dec 2017
Recent data points suggest that channels like Republic TV and Time Now get the maximum share of audience attention. However, the pertinent question that we need to be asking, is "Why are we consuming news in this fashion?) The reasons are many. The strongest reason being the need for instant vindication, the need for aggression, the sense of restlessness and inability to disagree peacefully. Logic and reasoning have a brief shelf life and a feeling of instant gratification is far more satisfying than engaging in long debates that are nuanced, prefaced and have reference points that go beyond the immediate requirement. 

Is the trend here to stay? Data does suggest so. This kind of a trend is probably here to stay. Political affiliations and lobbies are getting stronger. Newsrooms are the new courtrooms. Newsrooms are the new electorate and newsrooms are the new parliament. Decisions of the judiciary are being questioned vociferously, exit polls are becoming bigger and new legislation are being discussed in detail, even before being fully conceptualized. It's worrying in a way. It's encouraging too. Modern Newsrooms and debates have created a great deal of curiosity amongst the public. People are now more participative and vocal about their thoughts and ideas. Spokespersons are now being taken seriously and many of them come well-prepared to face the camera and the questions which are direct, hard-hitting, thought-provoking, closed and sharp on most news channels. An extraordinarily engaged section of audience seeks qualitative information, logic, and responsibility for the responses and opinions. Every word counts. Every person is a potential influencer and nothing goes unheard. There is an organized attempt to present the best to the audience today. Beyond TRP and beyond rhetoric, a sense of being 'watched' engulfs the contemporary India newsroom debate today, albeit a little noisier and a little more chaotic. To succeed in the newsroom war, you need to sweat it out! In the end, its indeed gratifying to see everyone flex their vocals as much as their minds in the attempt to woo mindsets. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

First Day, First Show

Image
The first day of the first job is as good as the first day of driving classes. You don’t know much about the process, the systems, the expectations or your abilities. However, you want to learn and you know that this is a time bound exercise. The first job is a test of sorts and a pace-setter for many careers. The first job needs a different approach. This approach is subjective and depends on aspects like organizational culture, reporting structure and role requirements. The first day of the first job is an excellent opportunity to create a great first impression. Small things like reaching office on time, being well-mannered and wearing the right dress do matter. But these cannot be major differentiators. Qualities like the ‘Right attitude’, ‘Being proactive’ and ‘Attention-to-detail’ can be major factors in giving you the ‘edge’ over others. Your first day at work can lead to many perceptions. Hence, you have to be a little observant and careful. Giving the right signals
Read more

'What to do' in Bengaluru?

Bengaluru attracts a huge number of students and employees from different parts of the country and is known for several good things including the weather. Many a time, people ask me, "What's special about Bengaluru?" . There are hundreds of interesting things to do at Bengaluru and hundreds of places to visit as well. But then, some things just stand out and qualify to become the "must do things at Bengaluru". They are: 1) Enjoy the local cuisine in at some iconic eateries like MTR and Vidyarthi Bhavan. (Try the Masala Dosa and the Rava Idli which are a specialty offering) 2) Visit the Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park to breathe in some fresh air and enjoy the serene atmosphere. The Cubbon Park also houses a huge library with a great collection of books. 3) Visit the 'Food Street' at V.V. Puram and taste some of the best snacks and the great variety of food stuff. 4) Visit the “Art of Living’ International Center located on the Kanakapura Road to get
Read more

COMMITment quests

Image
Vince Lombardi once said, “Individual commitment to group effort-That is what makes a team work, a company work, and a civilization work.” As I ruminate on this quote, I can’t help but admire the effective moral that this quote summarizes. Getting the best, many a time means giving the best. For me, ‘giving the best’ to whatever, whoever, whenever is a form of considerable commitment. When you demand commitment, an automatic implication is to also commit commitment. Brilliant feats have been achieved through extraordinary commitment, in the fields of sport, social service, research and so on. Nadia Comaneci’s feat of the first perfect 10 in gymnastics, the example set by Red Cross society, having delivered humanitarian aid to nearly 600 million people in the last one year and the discovery of the God particle seem to reinforce the fact that extraordinary commitment is possible. But then, what are the issues confronting people who are not able to vouch commitment?   The answe
Read more