The Sale of NewsX
When I joined INX News Pvt Ltd in March 2007, it was a completely different channel from the one that may have got sold, from what I’m hearing from the inside. Let…
When I joined INX News Pvt Ltd in March 2007, it was a completely different channel from the one that may have got sold, from what I’m hearing from the inside.
Let me take you back: For one, Vir Sanghvi was the Boss. His deputy Avirook, was someone I’ve always enjoyed working with. Peter Mukerjea still had the glow from his Star days around him. And Indrani was someone we didn’t know.
The very first office was a complete set of tables and chairs in a business centre deep inside the New Okhla Industrial Development Area.
The other, non-editorial, half of the team — the more important half in the leadup to the launch — was also just assembling. Some of them remain very good friends.
Nick Pollard arrived soon after, and back then, things looked liked they were off to a good start.
By the end of the year everything changed. That’s when the relationship between Vir, Peter and Indrani took a turn for the worse. To cut a long, and sometimes sordid, story short, Vir and the Mukerjeas parted ways in late January. And we were asked to leave soon after on January 29, 2008.
Immediately after, confidence in the newsroom hit a low. Nearly a hundred people resigned, sometimes taking jobs that paid less. Over time the resignations weren’t limited to the newsroom: key members of that original team that gathered in Noida for that first meeting also quit soon after the launch.
In the months since, many things changed in NewsX. The problems however stayed, since the problem didn’t stem from the people who worked there, but from the people who ran the place.
Today, it looks like things change again. But, for once, the change is happening in the right place — at the top.
In meetings with various departments through the day, the channel’s editor has reportedly told people that the channel has been sold lock, stock and barrel. He said that while the management would change completely, no jobs were in danger. I’ve heard this from at least three sources I trust completely.
Which leaves us with the who. I don’t know yet. From what I hear, all will be known on Monday. But I’m guessing it’s someone who has an existing channel.
{UPDATE: I can confirm that the ABP group isn’t the buyer}
Also, I don’t know why the technical staff isn’t being taken into confidence by their bosses. Here’s the bad news: if an existing channel is buying then the existing department heads over there will take over technical functions, which means that technical heads may be either asked to serve as deputies or leave. Again, this is complete speculation.
What is absolutely certain is that this will let the Mukerjeas focus on their flagship entertainment channel 9X, which, if exchange4media is to be believed is in terrible state:
For the target C&S 4+ in the Hindi speaking markets, Star Plus is the genre leader with 263 GRPs. Colors has cornered 213 GRPs, while Zee TV has 189 GRPs. Following these in the next rung – Sony has 82 GRPs, Star One at 73, and NDTV Imagine is at 62 GRPs. Sahara One has clocked in 46 GRPs. SAB has 45 GRPs, which is one of the highest numbers that the channel has seen in recent times, 9X at 44 GRPs has seen one of its lowest numbers in recent times.
…
9X is still airing repeat content and has as yet not begun the shooting of any fresh episodes of its existing shows. The channel has claimed that it is revisiting its programming strategy, and that until a decision on that is fructified, the channel would not be shooting.
The next few months will be crucial, but it should lead to a fresh start for the channel and many of the people who work there.
I wish everyone in there the very best.
UPDATE: I’ve turned comments off for this particular post. While I can appreciate that some of the people choosing to comment may have legitimate reasons to feel angry about various things within the organisation, I’m afraid my blog isn’t the best place to be airing these grievances.
May I recommend the minimsft.com model: an employee of Microsoft has chosen to blog there for many years now. His blog has a huge following within the company as well. For the most part, the only thing he insists on is a civil tone, and has very low tolerance for personal attacks.
In other words, start your own blog and set your own rules. And let me know about it …
Recovered from the site’s WordPress archive, where it was published on 2008-12-18.