The Panama Papers probe has been awarded with the Data Journalism Award 2016 for Investigation of the Year at the Global Editors Network (GEN) summit in Vienna on Thursday, 16th June. A collaborative work of more than 100 media organizations including The Indian Express, the Panama Papers exposed the inner workings of the secretive offshore financial system in Panama. Accepting the award on behalf of ICIJ, data journalist Cécile Schilis-Gallego paid tribute to the global team of reporters and the source of the Panama Papers data. » Celebrating the 15th death anniversary of Moturi Hanumantha Rao, Founder-Editor of Prajasakti, the newspaper presented awards to its journalists in Anantapur on Saturday, 18th June. V Gopi, Staff Reporter bagged VR Bomma Reddy Memorial Best Journalist award for the year 2016 while senior journalist Dasari Alwar Swamy was chosen for the Moturi Hanumantha Rao Memorial Best Journalist award and Dandapani was selected for Best Rural Reporter award. » Today, on the morning of second International Yoga Day, PM Narendra Modi urged people to embrace yoga for better physical and mental health. Modi oversaw some 30,000 yoga enthusiasts in Chandigarh’s Capitol Complex performing deep breathing and stretching exercises before joining them. Over 96,000 people had registered themselves to take part in the event. » With an aim to facilitate loans to financially weak students wishing to pursue higher studies in the national capital after passing their Class XII examination, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal launched an online portal on Monday. Students will not be required to furnish any collaterals or margin money in the scheme, which will be universal in nature, regardless of the student’s background. See more.
Narendra Modi
World Leaders on Periscope
If you’re not familiar with Periscope, you should be! This week’s Podium features Burson-Marsteller’s World Leaders on Periscope – the agency’s latest research into how world leaders, governments and international organizations communicate via social media. The research builds on Burson-Marsteller’s highly acclaimed annual Twiplomacy study, now in its fifth year.
Periscope, which has more than 10 million registered users and claims more than 200 million broadcasts after only one year in operation, has become the go-to social network for breaking news. The defining feature of Periscope, arguably one of its major drawbacks, is that the broadcasts disappear after only 24 hours and it’s necessary to save and upload the recording to another video platform for it to be available for posterity.
- 31 governments have set up a channel
- 93 governments and world leaders have downloaded the app
- 62 governments and world leaders have gone live from a mobile device
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is amongst the Top 10 Most Followed World Leaders on Periscope. The full excel table of data collected on April 22, 2016 can be downloaded here.
Like other new and popular social media platforms, Periscope has captured the essence of “discovering the world through someone else’s eyes”. Although broadcasting live from a mobile device is not new, Periscope, an app owned by Twitter, has made it far easier to communicate directly with your followers and read their comments in real time.
During the terrorist attacks at Brussels airport on March 22, 2016, traditional broadcast journalists flocked to Periscope to find live- streamed videos and first-hand reports of the aftermath of the blasts.
Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto has the most followers numbering 90,000, after six live broadcasts in the summer of 2015. The White House comes second with 81,000 followers; and Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff is in third with 76,000 followers.
French President François Hollande and Jordan’s Queen Rania complete the top five list of the most followed accounts, but neither have yet gone live on their personal accounts and have no hearts to show. India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the UK government, the Russian Foreign Ministry, Canada’s Justin Trudeau and the French Elysée Palace complete the Top 10 list of the most followed accounts.
The White House inaugurated its Periscope channel with a live broadcast of Pope Francis arriving for an official visit to the United States on September 22, 2015. More than 11,000 viewers tuned in to watch the Pope greeting the Obama family on the tarmac of Andrews Air Force Base in Washington D.C., and the Periscope account gained 3,800 followers in the process. However, the White House has not gone live since, only promoting several Q&A sessions with presidential advisor Valerie Jarrett on her own Periscope channel. The White House channel also has become the most liked Periscope channel, collecting almost a quarter of a million likes during its papal broadcast. To like a broadcast, viewers simply tap the screen of their mobile devices and the likes fly into the picture in the form of hearts from the bottom right hand side.
Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has received almost 100,000 hearts on his three live broadcasts from his swearing-in ceremony on November 4, 2015 and from his press conference with Barack Obama in the Rose Garden of the White House on March 10, 2016. The British government went live when David Cameron made his first speech in front of 10 Downing Street after his re-election on May 8, 2015. His most recent post was the lighting of the Christmas tree on December 13, 2015, which he also shared on Vine.
So far world leaders have used Periscope mainly to broadcast press conferences and speeches. However, no world leader has yet taken any questions via Periscope or organized a live Q&A session in which to answer questions popping up directly on the Periscope screen.
Twitter At Your Service
On 21st April, GOI is going to launch a new service “Twitter Seva” for entrepreneurs of different stages to seek support or funding assistance from the government. After PM Narendra Modi launched Ola e-rickshaw services for Tier II and III cities, this is a concrete step in the same direction to strengthen the ‘Start-Up India, Stand-Up India‘ initiative. » Indian Union Ministers now have a social tally. Recently ranked by the PMO on the basis of how quickly and efficiently they respond to public grievances on Twitter, the list saw Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj at the top. Close to follow was Minister of Railways, Suresh Prabhu, with a special control room to address complaints and grievances through the ministry’s official handle @RailminIndia. Check the full list of tech savvy officials here. » Speaking of tallies, in a survey by CareerCast, which reviewed more than 200 jobs based on the environment, income, outlook and stress associated with them, newspaper reporter is the worst profession for the third year in a row. » Good news for Bhubaneswariya train passengers as they will now be able to avail Google’s high- speed free wifi services. Commissioned by RailTel in association with Google, launched by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu on 18th April in the Odisha capital, this service is aimed to benefit 1.4 lakh visitors at Bhubaneswar station, daily. » Dainik Bhaskar has recently launched an ad film that supports girl child education. Part of the brand’s ‘Zidd Karo Duniya Badlo’ campaign, the two minute short film is created by Ogilvy & Mather and is scheduled to be telecast through all media channels on a pan-India basis.
Panama Nets Big Fish
Over 500 Indians outed in the Panama Papers list. Big names on the list, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Amitabh Bachchan, Indiabulls’ Sameer Gehlaut, and DLF promoter K P Singh have been discove
red in the secret files of Mossack Fonseca, a law firm in Panama. All names on the list paid the firm to set up offshore entities in tax havens around the world. Read more on the 8 month long investigation by The Indian Express here. » A series of tweets from an unverified account @AarSee (Raghav Chopra) of a CNN-IBN news editor, caused quite the stir in social media. The tweet , with a photo-shopped picture of PM Narendra Modi touching Saudi royalty’s feet, was accompanied by bigoted comments inciting hatred in extremists. Raghav Chopra was unavailable for any clarification after the Twitter account status was changed from public to protected. » DD goes mobile. Digital Terrestrial Television, DD’s digital arm, has started mobile TV for users in 16 cities. The free service can be used without an internet connection but requires a separate dongle to catch DD signals. DD National, DD News, DD Bharati, DD Sports, and DD Regional are currently being relayed on this service. » National Geographic partners with MM Publications of the Malayala Manorama Group for the Indian edition of the Nat Geo Kids magazine. Hitting the stands with the April 2016 issue, the photo-driven publication will also be available for subscription.N
Women Of Worth
L’Oréal Paris has joined hands with NDTV for the ‘Women of Worth 2016’ awards to celebrate extraordinary Indian women for their powerful contribution to society. Actress Sonam Kapoor, brand ambassador – L’Oreal Paris, unveiled the trophy, introduced the jury and announced the categories and nominees on Monday. The winners, to be decided through a public voting system in conjunction with jury inputs, will be felicitated in Mumbai on 28 March, 2016. » Inspired by Germany’s Hannover Messe, one of the largest industrial exhibitions in the world, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set to inaugurate the maiden ‘Make in India’ week from February 13 in Mumbai. Aimed at attracting investments, the week will be attended by 190 companies, including MNCs, 5,000 delegates from 60 countries, and leading industrialists including Ratan Tata and Mukesh Ambani. See more. » Canada India Foundation (CIF) has decided to honour Dr. Subhash Chandra, Chairman of the Essel Group & ZEE, with its prestigious Canada India Foundation (CIF) Chanchlani Global Indian Award. CIF, a public policy organization, works to strengthen Canada India relations and to celebrate the global Indian community. Dr. Chandra will be receiving this award on April 22 in Toronto, for his global leadership, strategic vision, and professional excellence.
PM Changes Game
Narendra Modi seems to have changed his outlook towards the media. According to sources, the PM is now telling his cabinet colleagues and bureaucrats to interact with the media and convey the work accomplished by his government in the last 18 months. His colleagues are however, continuing to stay away as they are wary of a fallout should they speak what is not in the script. » The Ministry of Finance is now on YouTube. The channel was officially launched yesterday with an aim to strengthen the online presence of the ministry by Arun Jaitley. It will feature videos of major schemes, meetings, events and press conferences exclusively related to the Ministry. » Actor Irrfan Khan has joined the bandwagon on the intolerance debate. Expressing that shutting one’s mouth is not a healthy sign of a growing society. “I find it very strange when few people say that actors should act and they should not express their opinions on issues. Everybody has the right to speak their mind and concerns” he said during the NDTV Indian of The Year Awards.
Bose Declassified
PM Narendra Modi has declassified 100 copies relating to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his 119th birth anniversary which throw light on the controversy over his death. The files have been put on digital display at the National Archives of India (NIA) who also plan to release 25 digital copies on its public domain every month. Chandra Kumar Bose, the grand-nephew of SC Bose welcomed this step and stated that it was a day of transparency in India. » India and France have committed themselves to closer ties, especially in combating terrorism. Addressing the India-France Business Summit, Modi said India and France had huge potential to work together in various fields with defense, green economy, smart cities, infrastructure, transportation, water and financial sector on the agenda of the Indo-French CEO’s Forum. PM of France and the Chief Guest for the 67th Republic Day, Francois Hollande also announced that France will sign an inter-governmental agreement with India to clear the way for the long-awaited $9 billion deal to sell French-built Rafale warplanes to India. »The Maharashtra Police have blocked 94 websites being used to radicalize the youth by the ISIS. In a major anti-terror swoop, the NIA has also taken custody of 14 people suspected to be ISIS sympathizers for plotting attacks in different parts of the country ahead of the Republic Day.
A Thousand Mistake
The Reserve Bank of India has admitted to wrongly printing of Rs 1000 denomination notes without the ‘silver thread features’ amounting to Rs 30 crore. While 20 crores are in the possession of the RBI, 10 crores notes have been circulated in the market. » TRAI has criticized Facebook for turning the regulatory body’s public consultation on Free Basics into a ‘majoritarian orchestrated opinion poll’. You can read the full five-page letter of January 18 from TRAI to Facebook here. » Smriti Irani breaks her silence on Rohith Vemula’s suicide case. Clarifying that the case is not a battle of casts, she blamed Congress party for politicizing the issue. Irani also went on to say that the death note had no mention of any MP or party and that the media has misinterpreted the case. » PM Modi has condemned the attack on Bacha Khan University in Pakistan. According to reports at least 30 people lost their lives while 50 others were wounded as four gunmen stormed into the campus and started shooting.
Memoirs Of A Desi Billionaire
The Z Factor – an autobiography by media mogul Dr Subhash Chandra was launched yesterday by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at 7 RCR in Delhi. The book is an unusual candid memoir of a truly desi self-made businessman who came to Delhi at age twenty with seventeen rupees in his pocket only to turn it into a 7 billion dollar empire. The book will also be unveiled at the 9th ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, today. » In a letter to MIB, Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel has sought permission to set up an exclusive channel, on the lines of Lok Sabha TV and Rajya Sabha TV, to telecast assembly proceedings live. “The ministers are accountable for development projects in their constituencies and for bringing these issues up in the assembly. They will also behave responsibly if they know that people would be watching them,” wrote Goel. The speaker further stated that he process to look for consultants for the project was underway, who in turn will submit a detailed project report, both financial and technical, to set up the channel. » The Kerala state assembly have announce the first ever ‘G Karthikeyan Media Awards’, instituted memory of late speaker and Congress leader G Karthikeyan. The first edition of the award ceremony saw Manorama News principal Correspondent Sreedevi Pillai as the recipient for Best Assembly reporting along with veteran journalist K G Parameswaran Nair, former bureau chief of Kerala Kaumudi daily.
Kejriwal Spurted
Arvind Kejriwal was attacked with ink as he addressed a thanksgiving rally for the success of the odd-even plan. The attacker, identified as Bhavna Arora, claimed that she was a part of AAP’s Punjab unit and had proof of Kejriwal’s involvement in the CNG Fitness scam. Manish Sisodia was quick to blame the police for not showing urgency as he went on to say that the whole attacked was scripted by the BJP. » The entrepreneurial community has lauded the ambitious guidelines set by Narendra Modi at the Startup India event. However, there exists skepticism in terms of implementation and execution of the proposals. Read more. » Anna Hazare has received an anonymous death threat letter claiming that the social activist will be killed on January 26. The sender has also suggested that Hazare should declare him his heir for all assets and possessions. “Anna has chosen not to comment on such letters as he does not fall prey to such threats”, said Hazare’s PA Shyam Pathade. The police however are taking no chances and have decided to review the security cover for him. » As promised, bosefiles.info has released interviews and statements of several witnesses to claim that Subhas Chandra Bose did indeed die after his plane crashed near Taipei. However, West Bengal CM Mamata Bannerjee has dismissed the theory and wants the ‘Russian angle’ to be investigated. Read the whole account here.
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