Image edited by Dinesh Raj M   Indian media loves blaming everything except the obvious. When viewership dips or trust thins out, the reflex explanations are familiar: censorship, algorithms, budgets, politics. Rarely do we look at the quieter, more uncomfortable reason. Audiences aren’t tuning out because they don’t care. They could be tuning out also because they’re tired. Our vast mediascape, which boasts thousands of newspapers, 900+ TV channels, and 1,000+ radio stations across languages, forms a trillion-rupee M&E industry with growing news consumption among 1.4 billion people. TV (Aaj Tak, CNN-News18) and Hindi print dominate, alongside regional dailies and FM music stations, while smartphones propel digital video news via YouTube for 150M+ online users, especially rural vernacular audiences.  However, according to a report by Statista, newspapers lead trust amid fake news concerns, bolstered by fact-checking apps, esteemed journalists, and

  The Digital Media Association, Punjab has mourned the passing of senior journalist and former Tribune Bureau Chief V.P. Parbhakar, who died at the age of 88, Punjab News Express reported. Parbhakar was widely respected for his honesty, integrity, and dedication to people’s causes, earning admiration across the media fraternity in Punjab. Association chairman Sainder Bains, president Devinderjeet Singh Darshi, and members paid their respects at the Sector 25 cremation ground, offering condolences to the bereaved family. Members of the Senior Journalists Forum, led by Jagtar Sidhu, along with Press Club President Saurabh Duggal, local journalists, friends, and admirers also honored him. Among those present were former DPRO Ujjagar Singh, Baljit Balli, Devinder Singh Kohli, Naveen Grewal, and others.

Gautam Adani’s group has acquired full ownership of Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) after purchasing the remaining 24% stake in the news agency for an undisclosed amount, according to Social Samosa. AMG Media Networks Ltd. (AMNL), the media arm of Adani Enterprises Ltd., executed the share purchase agreement on January 21, 2026. Following the transaction, IANS will become a wholly owned step-down subsidiary of the company. The Adani group first acquired a majority 50.5% stake in IANS in December 2023 and increased its holding to 76% in January 2024. The full takeover further expands the group’s presence in the media sector through AMG Media Networks.  

NDTV Profit has announced the launch of its Union Budget 2026 editorial campaign, ‘Return on Watching’, positioning itself as a comprehensive destination for insight, clarity, and context around India’s most important economic event of the year Anchored in the channel’s philosophy of ‘For Your Profit’, the campaign is designed to deliver meaningful value for investors, entrepreneurs, professionals, and first-time market participants. The coverage will span television, digital, social, live streaming platforms, and on-ground reporting.  The Budget programming will be led by NDTV CEO & Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal, Managing Editor Tamanna Inamdar, Markets Editor Niraj Shah, and the NDTV Profit editorial leadership. Coverage will include pre-Budget expectations, live and uninterrupted telecast of Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s ninth consecutive Union Budget, real-time analysis, and post-Budget decodes.  A key highlight i

After 7 years, PR and media training agency Media-Wize is no more, having shut down in December 2025.  Co-founders Anthony Caruana and Kathryn Goater have moved on to new roles. Caruana will take on a contract role within the energy sector, while Goater has joined the Recognition Group as Account Director.  Reflecting on the closure of Media-Wize, Caruana told Influencing, “We reached a good point where both of us wanted to go off and do different things; it was a great experience.” “I learned a huge amount. I have a completely newfound respect for the PR industry, having spent most of my last 25 years on the other side of that fence…Kathryn was a great teacher, and she’s clearly one of the best at doing that.”  Goater explained that Media-Wize was at first operated as a side hustle alongside the duo’s day-to-day roles, but it then evolved into a full-service PR consultancy, working with a range of technology and cybersecurity clients.  “Closing Media-Wize ma

Welcome to Thursday and let's start with The Australian where a front page story by Matthew Cranston and Thomas Henry telegraphs, "The blame game for the likely first rate hike in years has begun...". Indeed it has, and leading that blame game coverage is a sobering strapline: 'TUESDAY RATE RISE ALL BUT LOCKED IN' and the headline pointing, of course, at Treasurer Jim Chalmers ('Jim's hard landing hits home').  To be fair, it's not just Chalmers in the cross-hairs, a piece by Judith Sloan reckons "the reality is, the Reserve Bank has made some major mistakes going back some time". Of course, Australia's economy doesn't happen in a vacuum so world events and their affect on prices of groceries, for example, is all part and parcel of pushing inflation up, hence the likelihood of a rate rise this coming week when the RB meets. But the buck has to stop somewhere and our man Chalmers is f

 Abdul Gani of The Assam Tribune was conferred the Best Sports Journalist of the Year Award at the 30th National Sports and Cultural Festival 2025–26, held at Kumar Bhaskar Natya Mandir on January 24. The festival was organised to mark the 111th birth anniversary of noted cultural figure Premoda Kanta Sarma and concluded with an annual award ceremony honouring achievers from various fields. Expressing his gratitude, Gani thanked the organisers and paid tribute to Premoda Kanta Sarma, saying he hoped Sarma’s ideals would continue to inspire future generations. He added that such recognition encouraged him to work harder and remain committed to responsible journalism. The Lifetime Achievement Awards were presented to Kaukab Azeem, former Assam chief secretary Kumar Sanjay Krishna, Ashok Saikia, Kamalesh Chandra Choudhury, Mahindra Das, Mukul Hazarika, Gakul Chandra Deka, and posthumously to the late Ramcharan Bharali. The Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika Centenary Award went to Anir