New Delhi: Prasar Bharati’s Digital Platform, a public broadcasting service with a wide audience base in the world, recently completed its 1000 days. Prasar Bharati News Service (Digital Platform), that is PBNS & DP, was formed as a digital wing in May 2019, in order to expand the popularity of its major dimensions – Doordarshan and All India Radio through social media.
PBNS & DP Chief Sameer Kumar described the last three years as very positive and full of achievements. Sameer Kumar, who has studied at IIT and IIM and worked in top banking companies abroad, said that we are working while aiming to deliver information and news of Doordarshan and All India Radio through the various highly effective platforms of Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and Telegram. He said that the importance of digital platforms emerged more rapidly during Covid-19 pandemic. We undertook to spread correct information through all social media platforms and generated awareness about fighting against Corona. PBNS was promoting the views expressed by health experts, doctors on Doordarshan and All India Radio, and the preventive measures, and helped in dispelling the confusion in a better way on all social media platforms.
Sameer Kumar said that in these changing times, people are now connecting with the world or seeking entertainment while on the move. The biggest feature of social media is that it is global. Indian society is spread all over the world. We are moving ahead with the approach of providing Indian content to the Indians around the world easily, that they get content related to India and content brimming with Indianness alongside fulfilling the need of the younger generation. After the formation of PBNS, more than 2 crore subscribers joined Doordarshan’s YouTube channel, on DD National’s Twitter handle this number has surpassed from 7 lakh to more than 50 lakh, and more than 1.5 lakh people have joined PBNS’s Twitter. PBNS has registering a solid presence on Telegram.
Kumar acknowledged the lack of information and misinformation paradigm by saying, there is a congenital defect of the digital medium that in the absence of correct information on social media platforms, misinformation spreads rapidly, which is called going viral. In such a situation, it is our resolve that cent per cent true and quality information should reach the people. In a way, it is our priority to fight fake news and fill the vacuum created between right and wrong.
PBNS & DP Chief said, ‘Our Prime Minister has always emphasised economic management and revenue awareness. Keeping that learning in mind, we made plans and implemented them from day one. We are happy that in the first year, we were given a budget of Rs.80 lakhs and earned revenue of over Rs.2 crores. The basis of our popularity is the long-standing reputation maintained by All India Radio and Doordarshan and the popularity earned from it.