Some statistics surfaced last week which disprove certain common myths about mainstream media. New light was shed on established hierarchies and apparent trends. The state broadcaster is on a roll, and Times Now’s shouting match every night is far from the most popular prime time English news show. Because of BARC (Broadcast Audience Research Council of India), we finally know people aren’t impressed with those who bark.
From what one deduces of BARC’s statistics, Times Now’s claim of being the number one English news channel is legitimate. This is because channels which come under the ‘English news channels’ category have their entire programming in English. Bilingual channels like DD News, which have English as one of their languages, are obviously not part of this category. The only way to assess the relative standings of a bilingual channel is to compare every one of its programs with similar programs of the same language aired at the same time on other channels. News Night, the state broadcaster’s daily English news bulletin at prime time (9 p.m. to 10 p.m.), beats its competitors like The News Hour (Times Now’s flagship show with its editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami) hands down. The News Hour has less than one third of News Night’s viewership. Distinctions such as these are important since some channels blow their own trumpets all the time, especially when it comes to viewership statistics.
The latest statistics reinforce the fact that people prefer impartial, balanced and poised reporting over the blatantly pseudo-secular/anti-Modi or the hyperbolic alternatives. One may think that DD News viewership is larger than its rivals because of its outreach in remote areas, but this cannot apply to their English content since it is unlikely to be of any interest to people in those areas. When it comes to English content, it’s pretty much a level playing field. But one would be surprised by the number of people who use the English television media to keep themselves informed. The pie that these numerous channels are vying for is miniscule; and the disproportionate influence that men and women from that industry wield in the corridors of power, is flabbergasting. According to BARC’s figures, Times Now stands at a little over seven hundred thousand impressions this week. Impressions are to a television channel what hits are to a webpage. But unlike a webpage, the actual number of viewers is much smaller. This is because the same people keep coming back to the channel at different points of the day, and some keep flipping in and out during the same session of television-viewing. I watch Times Now but never in one stretch. I switch to it at least ten times during the day, which means I’m responsible for at least seventy of the seven lakh weekly impressions. I’m not aware of the viewing patterns of fellow-viewers, but what I can safely estimate is that we’re a paltry bunch. We are not ‘the nation demanding an answer’.
Another way to arrive to the same conclusion is to look at the prime time statistics. The nine to ten p.m. timeslot is, as the name ‘prime time’ suggests, that time of the day when the largest number of people watch television. It’s that time of the day when every news channel puts its ‘most eminent personality’ forward to anchor the bulletin. At that time of the day last week, Time’s Now had an average eighteen thousand viewers every evening. In the ‘English news channel’ category, NewsX stood at number five with one and a half thousand viewers. NDTV 24X7 isn’t even featured on that list.
https://twitter.com/DDNewsLive/status/687244899754840064
DD News’ English news bulletin in the same time slot had more than fifty-six and a half thousand viewers. Although it isn’t a huge number, it is more than every English news channel’s prime time viewership put together. What is most amazing about this is that there doesn’t appear to have been much effort from DD’s side to achieve this. True the graphics aren’t as drab as before, but they still remain far from professional. True the level of debate and discussion is far superior to some of its peers. But the quality of bureau reports is average. Its commercial breaks have a heavy ‘sarkaari’ feel to them. And yet they rule the roost, simply because of their balanced reporting.
These figures must be a huge morale booster for the state broadcaster. But the momentum needs to be carried forward. Imagine what DD can achieve if it launches a full time English news channel after having addressed its technical shortcomings. A state of the art news channel coupled with strong journalistic ethics would drive several anti-social elements out of business. Unfortunately, viewership for the ‘English news channel’ segment is small and in perpetual decline. Also, most anti-social elements have been driven out of business already. It is corporate and political funding with very specific objectives that keep certain loss-making media houses afloat.
It is now a fact that digital products are what most people use to stay in touch with what’s going on. Print media has been on the decline and television as we know it is also likely to head towards obsoleteness soon. Content will be streamed live instead. Twitter feeds, digital publications and current affairs applications are already a big part of carrying news to the masses, but the importance and volume of their role will keep increasing. The advantage of the digital domain is that it has a much wider reach and is relatively cost affective. This is the direction that DD News should pursue. If they can remain as credible and balanced as they are and focus on products such as these, they can beat their peers in this domain.
Much of this is wishful thinking. But India remains one of the largest countries in the world which doesn’t have a truly global media conglomerate. It would be nice to see DD News step up and become to India what RT is to Russia or what CCTV is to China. We cannot let one of our partisan, often anti-national media houses to be our flagship international news bearer. DD News is still very far from assuming such a role. But non-partisan reporting that attracts the English speaking audience is a good start. It’s a question of innovation now.