Gautam Mengle, former Senior Assistant Editor at Mid Day Times.  A journalist, author and lecturer with over 10 years of experience in the media industry, Mengle is also a cybersecurity enthusiast. 1) How did you get started in journalism? Quite the accident, but a happy one. I fell prey to societal norms and chose the Science stream for Class XI and XII, because I scored a certain percentage in SSC. I laboured through Classes XI and XII and finally appeared for an aptitude test, which set me on the right path. I enrolled for Bachelor of Mass Media, wrote as a freelancer for the Times group while finishing a one-year post graduate diploma, and then got a job at the Asian Age in September 2008. Haven't looked back since. 2) Can you describe your work and the stories your team most commonly works on? I've worked across seven newsrooms from 2008 till date, and the work has been diverse. I started out as a field reporter on the crime beat, moved on to pitching in with editing copy,

The Constitution emerged as one of the central points of political contention between the govt and the Congress-headed opposition on the 75th Constitution Day with both sides hurling accusations at the other for disrespecting and violating the spirit of the document. Prime Minister Modi declared November 26 as the Constitution Day in 2015 during his first term. Utkarsh Anand for Hindustan Times reported PM Modi emphasised that the spirit of “Nation First” will ensure the enduring relevance of India’s Constitution for centuries, as he highlighted the extension of the Constitution to Jammu & Kashmir — where Constitution Day was celebrated this year for the first time — and asserted India’s firm resolve to respond decisively to threats from terror organisations. “Our Constitution is not just a lawyer’s document; it is a spirit—a spirit of the age,” Modi said. Subodh Ghildiyal for The Times of India reported Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge accused Modi o

Craig Hutchison is set to return to the Seven Network in 2025 to host The Agenda Setters, a new AFL talk show airing Monday and Tuesday nights during the season, Mumbrella reported.  Hutchison, who is also the CEO of Sports Entertainment Network (SEN), will lead the Monday night edition alongside new Seven recruits Kane Cornes and Nick Riewoldt. Seven’s director of sport, Chris Jones, described the show as “appointment viewing,” commending the experienced production team driving the project. Hutchison shared his enthusiasm for the role, highlighting Seven’s strong legacy in AFL coverage.  “I’m excited to return to Seven and work with such a talented team on a show that promises to set the agenda for AFL discussions,” he said. This move follows reports of tension at Nine’s Footy Classified, where Hutchison, Cornes, and Caroline Wilson were rumoured to be exiting. Cornes' move to Seven was confirmed earlier, while Hutchison and Wilson’s departures remained specu

Award-winning journalist Sam McClure will rejoin The Age full-time in January 2025 as a senior sports affairs reporter, Mumbrella revealed.  McClure will focus on AFL, breaking sports news and marquee events such as the Australian Open and Formula 1 Grand Prix. McClure, who joined The Age in 2016, stepped back from a full-time role in 2022 but continued contributing to the Scoop column. He expressed his pride in returning to a publication with deep personal ties, noting his father Geoff’s legacy at The Age. “I’m excited to come back full-time to a newsroom that has always felt like home,” McClure said. Editor Patrick Elligett welcomed McClure’s return, calling him one of Australia’s leading sports news-breakers and emphasising his value to The Age's sports coverage.  

Comedian and TV presenter Nikki Osborne will join Nova 106.9’s Brisbane breakfast lineup as part of The Ash, Luttsy & Nikki Osborne Show, launching January 20, 2025, Radio Today reported. Osborne replaces Susie O’Neill, who recently departed the show. Teaming up with longtime hosts Ash Bradnam and David “Luttsy” Lutteral, Osborne, a Brisbane local, shared her excitement about returning home and joining the team.  “I’m thrilled to be back in Brisbane and to join the breakfast crew, even if I have some big flippers to fill,” she joked, referencing O’Neill’s legacy. Bradnam and Lutteral welcomed Osborne, praising her extensive entertainment experience and local roots.  Osborne’s resume includes appearances on Hughesy, We Have a Problem, I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here!, and her recent stint on Dancing with the Stars 2024.  

Cyber Daily’s Daniel Croft’s job at the masthead has gone beyond its purpose of just reporting on cyberattacks, as the journo says his role has progressed quickly in the fast-paced industry.  Speaking to Influencing, he explained “You learn a lot on the job as a journalist. There's a lot of technical knowledge you need to quickly pick up on. As I began looking into and investigating cyberattacks, I started delving deeper.”   And part of delving deeper into his cybersecurity journalism role included creating multiple avenues of sourcing stories.  “David [Hollingworth] and I, we use the dark web. It sounds scarier than it is. But many of these hackers and threat groups will use the dark web to advertise their claimed cyber attacks.” “We have programs such as threat feeds, which they scrape and look for listings on those forums, on leak sites of popular ransomware or threat groups. So we find those, and from there, we go directly to the source because the only pers

Venturing into journalism out of love for creating political cartoons, Nilesh Khare has spent the past two decades over a diverse range of media and is currently the COO of Saam TV. Despite his busy work life, Nilesh still sketches political cartoons for various publications. Know more about this industry veteran here. Nilesh Khare, Chief Editor of Multimedia Content and COO, Saam TV, Sakal Group. A senior media professional with 20 years of rich & diversified experience in Print, Television and Digital content and Business development, Khare's first love is sketching political cartoons and considers the series he did on Marathi entrepreneurs among his best. 1) How did you get started in journalism? I had always wanted to be a political cartoonist. Someone suggested to me that to be a good political cartoonist, you should learn journalism. I joined journalism school after that and got attracted towards the television, but still I’m doing a lot of cartoons for various publica