BARC Wk 23: News18 Hindi topples leadership of Aaj Tak in HSM (U)

BARC India data for Week 23 (Saturday, June 1 to Friday, June 7) of 2019 [HSM (U) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals] has been released. Data for Hindi News genre has seen a major shift with News18 Hindi’s toppling Aaj Tak’s long held pole position in the Hindi News channels for HSM (U). However, gross viewership for News18 Hindi dropped to 62713(000) impressions compared to the Week 22 where they had 82238(000) in HSM (U).

Similarly, other news channels saw a significant drop in their impressions for HSM (U) compared to last week's data.

Aaj Tak which was in first place in Week 22 with 96820(000) impressions garnered only 59948(000) this week in HSM (U).

India TV saw a drop to 54765(0000) impressions from 82938(000) impressions.

ZEE News saw a decrease in viewership to 53451(000) from 64026(000).

Republic Bharat dropped to 50116(000) impressions from 73132(000).

This dip in viewership could be attributed to the end of the election season and ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 pulling viewers away from Hindi News channels.

"News18 India is focused on delivering truly engaging content and formats of programming; this has enabled the channel to grow exponentially and cement its position as the No. 1 news channel in the country. Our primetime line up is particularly strong with different shows aimed to serving different needs – from the pacy Sau Baat ki ek Baat to the explosive Aar Paar; from the insightful Hum Toh Poochengey to the hugely popular Bhaiyaji Kahin. As a result, audiences have developed tremendous affinity for the brand which clearly reflects in our viewership numbers" said Mayank Jain – CEO, Hindi News Cluster, Network18.