BARC temporarily stops weekly ratings of news channels amid TRP scam

News Network
October 15, 2020

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New Delhi, Oct 15: Following the fake Television Rating Points (TRP) scam, the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) on Thursday announced a temporary suspension of weekly ratings of news channels across languages.

The council intends to review and augment the current standards of measurement to improve on "statistical robustness", and the exercise will result in a "pause" in the weekly ratings for up to 12 weeks, an official statement said.

At least five people have been arrested by the city police which busted the scam earlier this month.

Those arrested include news channel employees, while the police is also questioning executives of Arnab Goswami-led Republic Media Group with regard to the case. Republic Media Group has denied any wrongdoing.

The audience estimates given by BARC influence ad spends, and the total size of the ad placements was pegged at Rs 32,000 crore annually by the police. The police allege the ratings were being rigged by inducing the homes where the monitors were placed.

"In the light of the recent developments, BARC Board has proposed that it's technical committee review and augment the current standards of measuring and reporting the data of niche genres, to improve their statistical robustness and to significantly hamper the potential attempts of infiltrating the panel homes," an official statement said.

The exercise would cover all Hindi, Regional, English News and Business News channels with immediate effect, it added.

"BARC will cease publishing the weekly individual ratings for all news channels during the exercise," it said, adding that the exercise will last between 8 to 12 weeks and include validation and testing.

" a pause was necessitated to enable the industry and BARC to work closely to review its already stringent protocols and further augment them to enable the industry to focus on collaborating for growth and well-natured competitiveness," BARC India chairman Punit Goenka said.

The industry body's chief executive Sunil Lulla said besides augmenting current protocols and benchmarking them with global standards, BARC is also exploring several options to discourage unlawful inducement of its panel home viewers and further strengthening its codes.

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News Network
November 25,2024

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Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has instructed the Hindu Religious Endowment Department to submit a proposal for constructing a gold chariot for the presiding deity of the state, Chamundeshwari, official sources said on Monday.

The directive follows a request from Member of Legislative Council (MLC) Dinesh Gooligowda, who highlighted the historical and cultural significance of the Chamundeshwari Temple on Chamundi Hill in Mysuru, which dates back to the 12th century AD.

Gooligowda noted that the existing wooden chariot, donated by devotees from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, has deteriorated over time.

“Devotees have expressed their desire to organise a ‘rathotsava’ using a gold chariot for Goddess Chamundeshwari. This proposal has been under consideration for some time, with an estimated cost of Rs 100 crore,” the MLC said.

He emphasised that the government’s financial involvement would not be required, as devotees are willing to contribute towards making the chariot a reality.

Gooligowda proposed a deadline for the 2025 Dasara festival for the completion of the chariot, ensuring it is ready for the grand procession featuring the idol of Chamundeshwari.

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News Network
November 19,2024

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News Network
November 14,2024

Bengaluru: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday backed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah over his claim that the BJP had offered Rs 50 crore each to 50 Congress MLAs in an attempt to "topple" the state government.

Addressing reporters here, Shivakumar, also the Congress state president, said, “The BJP indeed lured 50 Congress MLAs with Rs 50 crore each.”

He defended Siddaramaiah’s statement and said the Congress MLAs were briefed about the BJP’s alleged 'Operation Lotus', a term used to describe the BJP's attempts to destabilise ruling governments through horse-trading.

“Some of our MLAs informed the Chief Minister about this matter, and he, in turn, shared it with the media,” Shivakumar said.

At an event in Mysuru, Siddaramaiah reiterated the claim that "none of the Congress MLAs had accepted the offer".

He also accused the BJP of filing false cases against him in a bid to "remove him and overthrow his government".

The BJP has yet to respond to the allegations.

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