NEWS Channels - Lecture notes 5 PDF

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NEWS CHANNELSINTRODUCTIONUntil a few years ago, Doordarshan was India's only source of news. In fact, private channels did not begin producing and presenting news until the mid- 1990s. After that, things moved quickly, and we soon had a slew of news channels broadcasting 24 hours a day, seven days a...

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NEWS CHANNELS INTRODUCTION Until a few years ago, Doordarshan was India's only source of news. In fact, private channels did not begin producing and presenting news until the mid1990s. After that, things moved quickly, and we soon had a slew of news channels broadcasting 24 hours a day, seven days a week. We'll talk about news production on Doordarshan and private channels in this unit. We'll also talk about the rise of private channels in India, as well as the evolution and changing trends in news production and presentation, with a focus on how the introduction of private news channels has altered the face of news in our country. We hope that this unit will help you better understand the current state of television news in our country.

News in DD (regional news unit) with spl. Ref. to Assamese News is broadcast on Doordarshan at both the national and regional levels. DD News, Doordarshan's 24-hour news channel, is available around the clock. It publishes news in English as well as Hindi. Initially, news was only broadcast on Doordarshan's national network, DD-1. However, in light of the proliferation of private news channels, the Union cabinet approved the proposal to convert DD Metro to DD news in a meeting held on October 3, 2003. The DD-News channel was launched on November 3, 2003, as a result of these decisions. This channel broadcasts Hindi/English news bulletins 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. These bulletins are also broadcast twice daily on DD National's National Network. Regional News Units (RNUs), which are attached to Regional Kendras, produce regional language news bulletins. Regional Language Satellite Services and

Regional State Networks broadcast a diverse range of news and current affairs programmes in the people's native tongues. DD Bengali, DD Oriya, DD Podhigai, DD Chandana, DD Gujarati, DD Punjabi, DD Sahyadri, DD Kashmir, DD Saptagiri, DD Malayalam, and DD North East provide regional language news in their respective states, terrestrially during the regional window of DD National and round the clock on the Regional Language Satellite Channels across the country, namely DD Bengali, DD Oriya DD North East Channel is a North Eastern satellite television service that broadcasts programmes in Assamese, English, and other North Eastern languages and dialects. In addition to entertainment serials, informative programmes, social programmes, current affairs, art, and culture, the channel broadcasts news in regional languages. Doordarshan studios in Guwahati, Agartala, Kohima, Imphal, Silchar, Dibrugarh, Tura, Aizawl, Itanagar, and Shillong produce the shows. In the North-East, Doordarshan has 12 programme production centres. In the capital cities of Meghalaya, Manipur, Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram, Tripura, Sikkim, and Arunachal Pradesh, television studios have been established. Additional television stations can be found in Tura, Meghalaya's Garo Hills, as well as Dibrugarh and Silchar, Assam. All transmitters in the North East broadcast a composite programme from Guwahati that includes an English news bulletin and a composite programme of interest to the people of the North Eastern states. Satellite uplinking facilities have also been established in all of the North East's capital stations to allow for the transmission of news and other current affairs programmes to Guwahati and Delhi. For DD Kendras in Shillong, Imphal, Kohima, Itanagar, Agartala, and Aizwal, a dedicated Digital Satellite News Gathering System (DSNG) is available, which includes hi-tech gadgets such as Satellite Phones and Video Phones.

The Regional News Units (RNUs) of Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Jaipur, and Patna, in addition to their regional bulletins, produce news bulletins for the DD News channel for insertion in Metro Scan and State Scan, as well as Rajyon Se Samachar. Kendra DD Guwahati broadcasts Assamese news twice a day: once at 9 a.m. on North East Channel for five minutes, and again at 7 p.m. on DD 1 and North East Channel for 15 minutes each. These bulletins provide comprehensive coverage of all major news events occurring in the state and region.

Growth of private television news channels In today's world, news has surpassed entertainment as the new form of entertainment, and television channels compete fiercely for viewers' attention. News has become so popular that all major television networks now include at least one news channel in their lineup. It's not easy, however, to create programmes that can be broadcast 24 hours a day, seven days a week. As a result, 24-hour news channels frequently cover all incidents, regardless of their position, location, or time. Not only has this changed the concept of news on Indian television, but it has also changed the news formats. As previously stated, Doordarshan had a monopoly on newscast on Indian television prior to the 1990s, and news programmes were frequently turned into a drab exercise. The private news channels, on the other hand, have provided a welcome change. The topicality, objectivity, glossy editing, and high-quality visuals are all strengths of today's news bulletins. Of course, this hasn't gone without criticism, particularly for turning news into entertainment and for violating ethical guidelines. But, all things considered, news has come a long way since the DD era. Every event, from local to international, breaking news to news analysis, television soaps to page three news, is covered by the news. Doordarshan, as a public broadcaster, has presented and continues to present news in a naturalised

manner. Controversial issues are largely hidden. Private channels, on the other hand, are unconcerned about these issues. 'The World This Week,' produced by New Delhi Television (NDTV) in 1988, was the first news programme produced by a private channel. This was the only programme made in India at the time that looked out to the rest of the world. The World This Week was an instant hit. It was successful in providing news content that regular DD news was unable to provide. Then, in 1989, NDTV broadcasted India's first live televised general election coverage. The coverage's critical and commercial success established a new benchmark for Indian television. Things began to change dramatically in the 1990s. International channels such as the BBC and CNN began to compete with Doordarshan news. To combat this, it even sold some news programme slots under the sponsored category. NDTV also became the country's first private producer of national news, which was broadcast on Doordarshan, in February 1995. Because of its on-the-spot reporting with relevant visuals, the show 'News Tonight' set completely new trends for Indian television, which has now become very common for any news channel. Then came 'Aaj tak,' a 20-minute Hindi current affairs programme produced by TV Today Network for the DD Metro channel. "Ye Thi Khabar Aaj Tak, Intizar," reads the sign-up message. Kijiye Kal Tak" immediately drew the audience's attention, and the show became well-known for its extensive coverage and unique presentation style by Late S. P. Singh. Following this success, the TV Today group launched Aaj Tak, a 24-hour Hindi news channel, in 2000. Nalini Singh's five-minute fast-paced, condensed daily news capsule Ankhon Dekhi, TV Today Network's Business Aaj Tak, and Newstrack, all of which aired on Doordarshan's Metro channel, were also very popular. Satellite channels focused on entertainment programming for their respective channels during this time. The most wanted area of 'news' was still ruled by Doordarshan. Viewers had only a few options for televised news, such as

Dordarshan, BBC, or CNN. But, over time, things began to shift. After launching the exclusive news channel Zee news in 1995, Zee TV became a major player in this scenario. The way news was delivered to viewers was revolutionised by this news and current affairs channel. The Murdoch-owned Star News followed in 1998. Star signed a five-year deal with Prannoy Roy's NDTV (New Delhi Television) to supply news content for the channel. The unwavering and exhaustive coverage of the Kargil war by Star News and Zee New elevated news coverage to new heights and redefined the concept of wartime journalism. Witnessing a war firsthand was unheard of in our country before, and an unprecedented wave of patriotism swept the country. NDTV launched its own news channels, NDTV 24x7 in English and NDTV India in Hindi, after its five-year contract with Star Group expired. These news channels made information available to viewers at any time and from any location. Then, in 2003, 'Sahara India Parivar' launched Sahara Samay, a 24-hour national Hindi news channel. It was one of the first city-centric satellite news channels in India, with 31 cities and their own city news bulletins. On March 27, 2005, Jagran TV Pvt Limited's news channel, Channel 7, was uplinked to the air. The channel was created to cater to the large Hindi-speaking population. Following that, a slew of other news channels popped up in quick succession. Timesnow (Times of India group), CNN-IBN, INX news, Focus TV, and others are among the many exclusive news channels available today. The most significant distinction between news on these private channels and news on Doordarshan is that news on Doordarshan is primarily information, whereas news on private channels is primarily news plus entertainment. This is because private channels' primary goal is to make money, so they must constantly look for ways to entice viewers by presenting appealing programming. This is accomplished by presenting news in a more glamorous manner, which includes smart, attractive news readers, impressive studios, glossy editing, and high-tech graphics, as well as the use of sensationalism.

Doordarshan, on the other hand, does not employ these strategies frequently, owing to two factors. For starters, it isn't required. In terms of reach, Doordarshan is far more widespread than any other channel, and thus has a virtual monopoly. Second, as a public broadcaster, it is expected to uphold certain ethical standards. As a result, news on Doordarshan is more sober and primarily aimed at informing viewers. After that, there is entertainment. Traditional news bulletins are no longer the only source of information. Panel discussions, debates, and expert analysis round out the programme. Live coverage of major events is provided 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Perhaps no better example exists than the coverage of the Mumbai terror attack in December 2008. The event was broadcast live on news channels around the world for hours on end. Citizen journalism is the newest trend in private TV news channels today. Ordinary people are encouraged to bring to the attention of the media issues that they believe should be covered. This does indeed bring the audience closer to the channel by allowing for more direct audience participation and feedback. Convergent technology and backpack journalism are two significant changes in today's TV news reporting. The basic premise of any type of journalism is exclusivity. In the race for breaking news, this exclusivity is being lost. Without relying on an elaborate set-up, the backpack journalist can shoot, write the narrative, edit the footage, add a music track, encode the video on a laptop, and send the edited footage to the satellite on his or her own. This can now be accomplished without the use of an OB Van. A simple, high-quality USB modem or data card will suffice. Many journalists are known to do it on a regular basis. The second issue in today's TV reporting could be the reporters' 'herding' mentality. We see the same 'breaking news' with the same footage across several channels while surfing for an exclusive storey because reporters and camera people from various channels share footage at the end of a long night.

To fully comprehend this phenomenon, one must delve deeper into the operation of television channels as well as the field of television commerce. It is insufficient to openly criticise television stations for poor news coverage. To understand why these changes are occurring, one must first understand the media business. The television industry is undergoing changes that are not only functional, but also technological and structural. To further their understanding of the industry, a media student should read literature on media business, media economics, and electronic media criticism.

Let us Sum up 1. News is produced at both the national and regional levels by Doordarshan. DD News, Doordarshan's 24-hour news channel, is available around the clock. It publishes news in English as well as Hindi. 2. Regional News Units (RNUs), which are attached to Regional Kendras, produce regional language news bulletins. Regional Language Satellite Services and Regional State Networks broadcast a diverse range of news and current affairs programmes in the people's native tongues. 3. The Regional News Units (RNUs) of Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Bhubaneswar, Lucknow, Jaipur, and Patna produce news bulletins for the DD News channel for insertion in Metro Scan, State Scan, and Rajyon Se Samachar in addition to their regional bulletins. 4. Things began to change dramatically in the 1990s. International channels such as the BBC and CNN began to compete with Doordarshan news. To combat this, it even sold some news programme slots under the sponsored category.

5. Traditional news bulletins are no longer the only source of information. Panel discussions, debates, and expert analysis round out the programme. Live coverage of major events is provided 24 hours a day, seven days a week....