The Tripura Legislative Assembly on Tuesday, Feb 03, felicitated a group of journalists, including veterans and photojournalists, for their professional excellence, reported Northeast Herald. However, the event quickly became controversial, drawing sharp reactions from both journalistic and political circles. Questions were raised over the Assembly authorities for allegedly not inviting Chief Minister Dr Manik Saha and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ratan Lal Nath, despite the programme being organised by a constitutional institution. The event was attended by Governor Indrasena Reddy Nallu, who presented honours to the selected journalists. While there was no major objection to the choice of journalists, some sections of the local media reportedly attempted to undermine the contributions of those honoured, allegedly out of professional rivalry. The absence of the Leader of the House and the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, however, triggered widespread discontent and political deba

Image edited by Dinesh Raj M   During a recent conversation with a leading PR professional here in Chennai on how to make press releases reach the right audience by embracing latest technology, this scribe was given a lesson in new-age journalism: Just register a dozen websites, subscribe to leading agency wire services, and flood the site with all their updates. Your site will begin to show good rankings in a while, and you have a dozen credible avenues to publish all your client's press releases.  "Nobody needs to know who owns these sites," he suggested.  A random Google search of any news item would reveal the number of outlets vying for the reader/viewer's attention.   The mass-firing of Washington Post journalists across the world is arguably as a direct fallout of this trend of "overabundance" of news. The Post's Executive Editor Matt Murray described the layoffs as “painful but necessary”, saying the pa

  India’s PayTV distributors have raised concerns with the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), accusing telecom operators and broadband service providers of harming the linear television business by bundling content with mobile and internet plans. Industry bodies and leading distribution platform operators (DPOs) said such practices are distorting competition, as the same broadcaster content is sold to telecom companies at lower prices while PayTV operators remain bound by strict tariff regulations. They claim subscribers are moving away from both PayTV and paid OTT services in favour of bundled telecom offerings. Executives said this pricing disparity has weakened the entire paid content ecosystem, with PayTV and OTT platforms struggling to retain subscribers. DPOs also flagged regulatory imbalance, noting that while they operate under TRAI’s New Tariff Order, telecom operators face no equivalent framework governing content bundling. They have urged policymakers t

The Danish Siddiqui Foundation has invited entries for the Danish Siddiqui Journalism Award 2026, instituted to recognise journalism that reflects integrity, courage, empathy and a commitment to truth. Established in memory of Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist Danish Siddiqui, the award honours reporting that engages deeply with complex realities, upholds ethical standards and contributes meaningfully to public understanding through impactful storytelling. The jury for the 2026 edition comprises veteran journalist, writer and critic Om Thanvi; Siddharth Varadarajan, founding editor of The Wire; Suhasini Haidar, Diplomatic Editor at The Hindu; senior investigative journalist and author Josy Joseph; Prof Sabeena Gadihoke, Director of AJK MCRC, Jamia Millia Islamia; and Saurabh Dwivedi, former founding editor of The Lallantop. Established in 2025, the Danish Siddiqui Foundation works to advance value-based journalism by empowering aspiring and experienced journalists through cur

  The Hervey Bay Advertiser joins the list of now defunct local newspapers, with publisher Malcolm Quinn announcing the newspaper has closed its doors, citing increased costs and insufficient revenue and an unwillingness to compromise on quality.  “In May 2020, when News Corp Australia announced it would stop printing and either close or convert around 112 local and regional newspaper titles as part of a major restructure toward digital-first publishing, we felt that Hervey Bay still had a decisive appetite for a truly local newspaper,” Quinn said. “That decision proved to be correct. The Hervey Bay Advertiser has proudly served the community since that time, publishing for almost six years and producing close to 150 editions.” During its publication tenure, The Hervey Bay Advertiser was recognised by the Country Press Association as the Best Community Newspaper in Queensland, setting a benchmark for both editorial quality and advertisi

Morning, welcome to Thursday and the big question is, who would want to be Chris Minns? I ask because The Daily Telegraph is giving the NSW Premier a right word lashing this morning, with no less than two critical stories on the front page and yards of follow-on words inside. Top of page 1 is a picture of a group of 'E-HOONS' as the Tele calls them, streaming over the Sydney Harbour Bridge on Tuesday on their electric bikes (as well as conventional motorbikes) and breaking many a law as they did so. Usefully, state political editor James O'Doherty's extensive piece inside the print edition includes a graphic with a list of the broken rules and laws. Thing is, says O'Doherty, and cue reader outrage, police didn't pursue the riders because it "could have been dangerous". Fair enough. But when they did catch up with the "gloating mob of e-bike riders" none were booked, with an assistant police commissioner quoted as sayi

News channels in India increased ad rates significantly during the Union Budget weekend, driven by high audience interest and advertiser demand. According to e4m, rates for live speeches and analysis climbed sharply compared to standard pricing. TV9 reportedly raised 10‑second slot charges to nearly Rs 12,000, attracting banking, insurance, LIC, and automobile advertisers. News24 also increased rates 1.5× to 2×, led by FMCG, BFSI, and automobile brands. Other channels gained from higher ad revenue as well. Despite the surge in demand, advertisers approached spending cautiously, keeping in mind a wider slowdown in the market.