TV channels pull out all stops

When Barack Obama was announced the 44th president-elect, most Indian news channels provided live coverage of the event. It was the first time an American election was covered so comprehensively. Rajdeep Sardesai, editor-in-chief, CNN-IBN, said, “Today is a great day for democracy. We usually like to support the outsider, the underdog. In this case, it was Obama.” IBN’s partnership with CNN ensured they had the top American journalists on hand, though the treatment was Indianised to appeal to the audiences here.

Apart from general reporting, many channels went that extra mile, providing information, views and comments.  NDTV 24/7 had a team stationed in the US. “The elections were a very global event, so our coverage began early, at the primary stage. Our major focus was how the new president would impact India,” said Sreenivasan Jain, managing editor, NDTV 24/7. One of their specials was a discussion featuring an Obama advisor and a McCain advisor, specially flown in for the show. 

Obama was a hot favourite from the start, although McCain put up a tough fight. Zee 24 Taas was so sure Obama would win, it did an entire feature on his life. Explaining the reason, Kalyan Deshmukh, production executive, said, “Obama’s story is very fascinating: His family, his background, his political career, how he became senator, and also the very fact that he is an African-American, added to his appeal.”