<>   In an era where clickbait-driven journalism is falling out of favour, Capital Brief is setting the standard with a new model for quality business and political news in Australia.  The publication's CEO, Chris Janz - who talked to us on Influencing Insider on Wednesday - identified a crucial gap in the Australian media landscape, drawing inspiration from successful international digital platforms like Axios, Puck, and The Information. "The last big wave of change in digital publishing was during the search and social era, where a whole bunch of websites were created really focusing on attracting traffic from Google and Facebook and generally relying on clickbait," Janz explains.  "Over the last few years, there's been a real shift in the new wave of digital businesses:” said Janz, who noticed two significant trends that influenced Capital Brief's creation. First, while innovative digital news outlets were flourishing internationally, while Australia hadn't seen a

The Hindu has been crowned the Champion Publisher of the year at the WAN-IFRA Digital Media Awards South Asia 2025, sweeping 10 wins across categories including video, AI, podcasts, and data visualisation.  The Made of Chennai initiative won gold for Best Use of Video and Best Native Advertising Campaign. The paper also clinched top honours for Best Podcast and Best Use of AI in Revenue Strategy.  Silver wins included their retrospective data story How India Voted (1952–2024), and bronze for Best Audience Engagement, Digital Subscription, and their visual story on the Kallakurichi hooch tragedy.  Receiving the award, Editor Suresh Nambath and CEO L.V. Navaneeth said the recognition reflects “collaborative effort across teams.”  “This overall champion award means a lot, it shows what’s possible when people come together,” said Navaneeth.  WAN-IFRA South Asia MD Magdoom Mohamed called the awards a recognition of “outstanding digital work” by South Asi

The Republic Kannada Sangama, a major cultural summit celebrating Karnataka’s literary, theatrical and cinematic heritage, was held on Thursday, 19 June 2025. The event opened with Sahitya Sangama, a session focused on Kannada literature, followed by Ranga Sangama, which explored developments in Kannada theatre. A key highlight was a debate on digitalisation’s impact on professional theatre, led by artist B Jayasri. Actor Kiccha Sudeep shared his views on cinema, while Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar addressed the gathering alongside other speakers including former Lokayukta Justice Santhosh Hegde, activist Chakravarthy Sulibele, Sri Nirmalanandanatha Swamiji and Sri Vishwa Prasanna Shreepadaru. Directors Dr Nagatihalli Chandrashekhar and T S Nagabharana, writer Yogi, Adamya Chetana co-founder Tejaswini Ananthkumar, and vocalist Vidushi Nandini Rao were also among the featured participants. The one-day summit brought together writers, performers, spiritual leaders and pub

  Criteo has announced a global partnership with dentsu, marking the first time its full Commerce Media Platform will be deployed by a major holding company. The collaboration aims to strengthen commerce and performance media strategies across dentsu’s client portfolio. Under the partnership, dentsu’s brands and retailers will access Criteo’s AI-driven audiences, buying tools, and measurement capabilities to enhance targeting and outcomes. Criteo’s publisher and retailer partners are expected to benefit from increased brand ad spending across owned platforms. Clive Record, President of Partnerships and Solutions at dentsu, described the move as “transformational,” citing the integration of Criteo’s product intelligence and SKU-level commerce signals. Brian Gleason, Chief Revenue Officer at Criteo, said the partnership brings together the holistic strategy required in today’s market. Dentsu will also integrate Criteo’s tools, including Commerce Max, Commerce Growt

  Secret Sauce Communications has been appointed as the PR and corporate reputation partner for Bindu Fizz Jeera Masala, as Karnataka-based SG Corporates prepares for the brand’s national rollout. The move marks a strategic expansion for the ethnic beverage, which has a strong presence in South India. Megha Shankar, Director – Strategy & Marketing at SG Corporates, said, "Bindu with its rich legacy in South India & as a proud Make in India brand, is now set to expand nationwide, introducing our much-loved Bindu Fizz Jeera Masala to a wider audience while staying true to our roots. Our focus is bridging tradition with innovation to make the brand relevant for today’s Gen Z and millennial consumers. With this partnership, we aim to create strong consumer connections and establish Bindu as one of the leading beverage brands across India." Shalini Gupta, Founder & Director of Secret Sauce, said the firm will focus on building Bindu’s market identity and visibility

  Gurugram-based public relations firm PRandit Solution has secured the strategic communications mandate for Strrot, a global luxury interiors and design collectibles. The partnership will focus on shaping Strrot’s brand narrative as it continues to blend art, design and lifestyle in India. This engagement deepens PRandit’s association with Strrot’s founder, Sidhant Lamba and expands the firm’s growing portfolio in the luxury and design segment. The mandate includes media strategy, editorial curation and brand storytelling. “Strrot represents a rare confluence of global artistry and Indian ethos,” said Shalu Jha, Co-founder of PRandit. “We’re excited to build compelling editorial conversations around its evolving design language. Having worked with Sidhant before, this collaboration is rooted in a mutual commitment to excellence and aesthetics.” The partnership begins as Strrot gears up to unveil the Ebano sculpture collection in June. The launch marks a new phas

Image source: Washington Post, Deccan Herald and Bahaaristan; Edited by Dinesh Raj M   In what’s fast becoming a diplomatic drama of competing narratives, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has firmly dismissed U.S. President Donald Trump’s claim that he brokered the ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor.  Hot off the Press According to The Times of India and The Hindu, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri briefed the media after Modi’s 35-minute call with Trump, clarifying that: 1) The ceasefire was requested by Pakistan, not mediated by the U.S. 2) There were no discussions of a trade deal during the call. 3) India made clear that it rejects third-party mediation, a stance that remains consistent across governments and parties. Modi reiterated that India’s retaliation in Operation Sindoor—in response to the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack—was a direct military action and any pause in escalation was entirely bilateral. Despite this, Trump con