[Reader-list] Lord save the world: India TV is the No 2 Hindi news channel

[Shivam Vij]

Sex, sleaze spell boom for Hindi channels

Shuchi Bansal

June 02, 2007
Business Standard
http://www.rediff.com/money/2007/jun/02spec.htm

Earlier this week when Rajat Sharma's Hindi news channel India TV
grabbed almost 18 per cent share of the news market, top management
teams in rival companies such as Zee News [Get Quote], Aaj Tak and
Star News, among others, went into a huddle.

Zee executives, it is learnt, spoke to TV Today managers who run Aaj
Tak, and wondered if the two could jointly take steps to curb India
TV's growing popularity. Star News' top brass, too, reviewed the
threat from Rajat Sharma's channel which grew from 12 per cent to 17.4
per cent in the last six or so weeks.

Tension ran high in the editorial and advertising sales team of
competing channels with people pledging to quit the TV news business
if India TV dislodged the leader. Such reactions, a bit alarmist, were
understandable. Surprisingly, India TV, which inched its way to occupy
the number two position and continues to sit there, is hardly
celebrated for its credibility or content.

Take a look at the kinds of stories that are helping it climb up the
popularity charts. In the last few weeks, among its most watched
stories was a private video of a starlet sauntering about her house in
lingerie. Jahnvi, the aspiring heroine was in the news some time ago
when she slashed her wrists during Abhishek Bachchan's wedding. The
video, played by India TV (and refused telecast by others or so they
claim), fetched the channel a 26 per cent viewership share and a court
notice from Jahnvi.

In the weeks gone by, it has aired stories with pulp fiction titles:
"Masjid mein sex" (where couples are allowed into ancient monuments
for a fee) or "Sex on the Rajdhani" (call girl in the first class
train coupe). Snakes mating also made news on the channel as did stuff
like "Joota bhagaye bhoot" and "Aurat bani maa Kali". Cold numbers
show that viewers have given a thumbs up to India TV's tabloid-like
content.

Interestingly, people are not only watching it in larger numbers, they
are spending more time on the channel. Those in the 15-plus age group
are watching the channel for 42 minutes a week, much higher than 34
minutes that the market leader Aaj Tak clocks.

Broadcasting industry's most acceptable television monitoring
mechanism -- TAM -- shows that even its elite panel (households owning
an AC, PC and car) has given India TV's popularity a leg-up by tuning
in. On the other hand, a hard news channel like NDTV India saw its
viewership slip by four per cent in the last few months.

To be sure, India TV is not the first Hindi television network to have
used tabloid-like content to get eyeballs. When former Aaj Tak
executive producer Uday Shankar was driving it, Star News, the JV
between ABP Ltd and Star India, did just that.

In fact, media industry veterans indict Star News for starting the
trend of blowing up the inconsequential. Among the first trivial
stories that occupied Star News' small screen for four to five hours
was "Mandir ka rahasya". The story focused on children who visited a
temple and, mysteriously, never wanted to return home to their
parents.

That week in 2005, Star News displaced Aaj Tak from the number one
position. Not one to go down without a fight, Aaj Tak came up with
"Yamraj se mulakat" where a dead man came alive and recounted his
experiences after death. "That was the beginning of the battle for
eyeballs and 'naag, nagin, bhoot-preyt' started surfacing on news
channels," says a former Aaj Tak producer, adding "racy tabloid
content on news TV became common".

However, at the same time India TV was taking the definition of
"tabloid" content a little further. It not only conducted a sting
operation on Bihar politicians' sexual escapades at Delhi's Bihar
Bhawan but also aired explicit visuals.

Little surprise, then, that media observers hold Hindi news channels
collectively responsible for tabloidisation of content.

Says Starcom Mediavest's CEO (South Asia) Ravi Kiran: "Pulp and
sensationalism are dominant across news channels. News may be the
fourth or the fifth element in their content plan after crime, sex,
violence etc." Agrees TBWA India's senior vice president, Gopinath
Menon: "Hindi news channels are straddling the entertainment space."

India TV's CEO Chintamani Rao, formerly a media specialist with
McCann-Erickson, is unruffled by such criticism: "People watch what is
relevant to them and it is they who decide what is relevant. In a free
competitive market, they choose and buy products and brands they
prefer. The same applies to TV news," he says.

To be sure, sex, sleaze and the slight are driving content on Hindi
news in general. But Zee News editor Raju Santhanam would have you
believe that sleaze is a subjective term. "What was sleaze earlier is
news today. The kind of stories that appear in print today would be
defined as sleaze 10 years ago. TV channels too can't remain
unaffected by the changing environment."

While not all content on news channels is crass, it is, more often
than not, flimsy. A senior news channel executive says that most
players are weaving content around the four Cs: crime, cinema, comedy
and cricket.

High viewership of Sansani on Star News and ACP Arjun on India TV
clearly show that crime sells. Two weeks ago, Star News' top rated
show was not one of its bulletins, but Parde Ke Peeche Kya Hai -- the
behind-the-scenes story of Vivek Oberoi' new film Shootout at
Lokhandwala.

Rao rubbishes the allegation that India TV airs sleaze, adding that
"sex, crime and supernatural sell and so does violence on TV,
newspapers, magazines, movies, books, the Internet. . . "

Psychiatrist Sanjay Chugh, too, isn't surprised by the popular vote to
tabloid content on news TV. "Horror, superstition, sleaze, crime has
always been part of our life. The only difference is in numbers. What
came in spurts, is rolling now," he says.

The trivialisation of Hindi news TV content stems from severe
competition in the genre. There are at least eight major Hindi news
channels fighting for the Rs 550 crore (Rs 5.50 billion) advertising
pie growing at 20 to 23 per cent a year. Santhanam says there is
increased pressure on channels to deliver ratings to generate revenue.

"We don't have the luxury of being a public broadcaster where numbers
don't matter. The challenge before a news channel is to keep its
reputation ahead of rating. It is a tough call." Unfortunately,
sometimes reputation is sacrificed for rating, he adds.

Needless to say, in the numbers game, news broadcasters need to
generate consumer stickiness to their channels through non-newsy spice
dressed as news. According to ABP Ltd (which runs Star News) CEO
Pramath Sinha, some broadcasters may be under a different kind of
pressure. "The new players have raised money from investors who may
want quick returns to cash out. News does not give such fast returns,
so you have to show numbers."

Besides, the distribution cost of a news channel is very high. Having
spent Rs 15 crore (Rs 150 million) to Rs 30 crore (Rs 300 million) a
year on distribution, there is little money left for investment in
programming. "So channels resort to cheap programming," says Sinha.

Compelled to drive viewership, channels hire stand-up comedians,
invite astrologers to the studio for viewer phone-ins and put up dance
and music shows. While light content gets viewers, do advertisers fall
for such "news"? Chintamani Rao says yes. Advertisers are already
moving into India TV. Among a slew of local advertisers are major
brands such as Tata Motors [Get Quote], Coca Cola and Amul.

However, news is a not a rational game as you don't buy it for
numbers. "The channels are bought for their image," says TBWA India's
senior vice president (media) Gopinath Menon. Agrees Ravi Kiran:
"Advertisers look at brand fit. They will not advertise in an
environment that doesn't suit them."

Hindi news channels have eroded their own brand equity by
under-selling themselves. "There was a time when DD's news bulletin
sold a 10-second spot for Rs 90,000. The category has degraded
itself." While that could be a function of DD's monopoly then, Menon
makes a point when he says that today channels follow a marketing and
not an editorial model. "There are no benchmarks, no rules for
content," he adds.

But that is set to change. And it must, say media observers. "If I
show a film on a news channel, it will get eyeballs. The question is
what you want to do. Viewers may be watching your content, but they
are certainly not defining it," says the CEO of a Hindi news channel.

Adds Rao: "Viewership is voluntary. If people wanted serious news, DD
News would have been the most watched channel."

TV Today's executive director G Krishnan, while refusing to comment on
India TV ("It is not our competitor. We are in the news business," he
says), points out that some serious news channels are slipping not
because of content but poor presentation and packaging.

"You must remember that the Hindi audiences needs some masala."
________________________________


The Regional Divide

Sex on the Rajdhani or in the Masjid will not find takers in Bengal,
Kerela or even Andhra Pradesh. "The kind of stuff you see on Hindi
news channels is peculiar to the North or, say, the Hindi-speaking
belt," says Sanjay Salil, a broadcast media consultant.

Salil has studied these markets as he's putting up news channels in
Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and the North east. "In these markets,
sleaze on news doesn't sell."

Agrees Star News' business development head Barun Das: "There will be
a furore in West Bengal if we put out what the Hindi news channels
show." Das should know.

He looks after Star Ananda, the ABP and Star JV's Bangla news channel.
There are four news channels in West Bengal and none seems to be
competing with the Hindi news channel content. Again, Kerala has four
news channels.

"Their storytelling may evolve but they are unlikely to go for
'tamasha'news of Hindi channels even when competition comes in," feels
Salil. But with Rajat Sharma now eyeing the Gujarati news market, will
the rules of the game change? ________________________________


However, the news broadcast industry is pausing to give its content
some thought. Informal discussions have been on among the Hindi news
channels to form an ethics committee and create an ombudsman to do
content audit for channels. The information and broadcasting ministry,
too, is revising the content code for television.
________________________________


Cracking The Code

The information and broadcasting ministry is revising the programming
code for TV channels. The review committee, set up more than 15 months
ago and comprising people from different sections of society (NGOs,
government officials, FICCI members, Film Guild representatives,
advertising industry bodies etc), met yesterday to modify the existing
programming code.

The revised code will spell out details on how sex and nudity, crime
and violence can be depicted on the small screen. Explicit visuals of
sexual activities and complete nudity will be banned. Crime shows will
be allowed but crime cannot be glamorised. Programmes promoting
superstition or the occult will not be allowed and "Adults Only"
content can be aired post 11 pm.

The revised code, part of the Cable Television Networks Regulation
Act, is also expected to incorporate rules for news channels which,
media representatives feel, may stifle their freedom.

"People may think that we just sit here doing nothing, but we do keep
an eye on all the TV channels. There is a long process which involves
the nod of an inter-ministerial committee," says a senior I&B
official.

The existing guidelines state that TV programmes must not show
obscenity or "encourage superstition", which Hindi news channels
happily do.

"We send notices for such programmes. Often, news channels hide behind
the garb of educating and informing people," says the I&B ministry
official. With the committee spelling out the details, the ministry
should have fewer reasons to fret.

"What constitutes obscenity will be explained. The revised code will
encourage self-regulation as we have no desire to be 'thanedaars' or
the moral police," says the official. The much awaited Electronic
Media Monitoring Centre (EMMC) will also come up.

"Currently, we informally divide channels to watch among our section
officers. Now we will have at least 50 people monitoring them round
the clock," he says. ________________________________


Some channels have resorted to introspection and realigned their
strategies. Henceforth, Star News will focus on the social aspect of
news. Last week it started a consumer affairs programme called Main
Hoon Na. "Another pilot of a programme on similar lines is on the
cards. We will do a reality show with a social conscience," says
Sinha.

IBN 7's managing editor Ashutosh (he does not use his surname) claims
that the channel tweaked its positioning and content some months ago.
It got out of the race for the frivolous to focus on hard news.

"In the last six months, we've seen 100 per cent growth (from 6 to 13
per cent) on the back of serious sting operations on corruption among
MLAs and spiritual leaders, among other things."

The view is that tabloid news is a short cut which eventually does not
make much headway. Star News tried it and succeeded up to a point. "It
got viewers but advertisers did not follow," says an industry
observer. Clearly, the way forward is segmentation between hard news
and tabloid news channels.

In any case, if Hindi news content on the small screen does not change
soon, there will be a consumer rejection of news channels, warns Ravi
Kiran. He speaks from experience of holding focus group discussions
for his advertisers.

Adds Zee News' Santhanam: "Most channel heads are hoping that viewers
will get back to news and that news will give us ratings. It's a
challenging time for Hindi news channels."