Indian elections have always been loud. What has changed is who controls the volume and who decides what counts as truth. With four states and one Union Territory heading to the polls in barely 10 weeks, the 2026 election cycle is already being framed by newsrooms as a test case for India’s hybrid democracy, writes Derek O'Brien TMC MP in his op-ed for The Indian Express. Not quite the full-blown “AI election” predicted for 2029, but something arguably more destabilising. A phase where traditional campaigning, social media virality, influencer politics, and artificial intelligence coexist, overlap, and often collide. Fake news, often treated as a moral failing or a fringe problem, has quietly become a structural feature of elections. Australia’s eSafety Commissioner defines it as fictional news designed to push an agenda. In India, it operates more like yellow journalism on steroids, turbocharged by algorithms that reward outrage over accuracy. With over 90 crore inte

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday condemned the alleged assault on a woman journalist during recent violence in Murshidabad’s Beldanga and called upon women and the youth to take the lead in ending what he described as an atmosphere of fear and intimidation in West Bengal. Speaking at a rally in Malda, he linked the incident to the unrest that followed the death of a migrant worker and alleged that journalists and ordinary citizens were unsafe under the Trinamool Congress government. According to The Print, Prime Minister’s remarks come amid a renewed political focus on women’s safety in the state, where women form nearly half of the electorate and have traditionally been a key support base of the ruling party through various welfare schemes. The violence in Beldanga was triggered by the death of 36-year-old Alauddin Sheikh, a resident of Sujapur Kumarpur gram panchayat area in Murshidabad, whose body was found in his rented accommodation in Jharkhand, where he worked

International technology news outfit TechDay are celebrating a strong start to 2026 after welcoming six new employees. The appointments follow a period of strong growth for the company, which produces the CFOtech, ChannelBrief, eCommerceNews, FutureFive, ITBrief, SecurityBrief, and Telco News titles.   “December was a record month for revenue, readership and the number of interviews completed,” said Publisher Sean Mitchell.  “2025 was a stellar year for us, revenue was up about 49%, and our expansion into the US and Canada has been a tremendous success,” he also told Influencing.  The hires include four new journalists, with Mark Tarre joining as News Chief, bringing over a decade of journalism and communications experience. Karen Joy Bacudo joins as Finance Editor, having recently graduated from Isabela State University in July 2025.  Two new news editors are Joseph Gabriel Lagonsin, joining from New York Weekly, aswell as Sofia

The Tripura Journalists Union (TJU), Tripura Electronic Media Society (TEMS), and Tripura Working Journalist Association (TWJA) have strongly condemned the attack on journalist Mrinal Debnath, a reporter with Daily Sangbad, on January 13, Tripura Chronicle reported. Debnath was allegedly assaulted and, despite reaching out to the officer‑in‑charge of Edinagar police station, received no immediate response. He was later rushed to hospital by colleagues for treatment. The journalist associations have demanded swift police action against those responsible, warning that they will launch protests if authorities fail to act.

After media reports highlighted the case of a 15-year-old boy from Bihar who was separated from his father at a railway station in Haryana and was later forced into bonded labour for several months, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has sought reports from senior officials in Haryana and Bihar. As per the report, the boy had gone missing after he got down from a train at Bahadurgarh Railway Station to fetch water and could not reboard due to the crowd. He was later taken away by a man on the promise of a job and forced to work in Greater Noida. During this period, he lost his left arm in an accident involving a fodder-cutting machine and was abandoned by his employer. Taking note of the media report, the NHRC said the case involves a serious violation of human rights. It has issued notices to the Chief Secretary and Director General of Police of Haryana and to the District Magistrate of Kishanganj in Bihar, asking them to explain what action has been taken and what help h

Senior Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders, along with journalist associations, on Wednesday, January 14, criticised the late-night detention of three journalists from Telugu news channel NTV by the Telangana police, calling the action illegal and undemocratic. According to The Hindu, journalists were taken into custody late on Tuesday night (January 13, 2026) in connection with a controversial programme aired by the channel involving a woman IAS officer and a State Minister. Former minister Singireddy Niranjan Reddy alleged that the Congress government led by Chief Minister Revanth Reddy was trying to intimidate journalists and suppress dissent. He said the government was also targeting unemployed youth, farmers, students and retired employees when they raised their demands. BRS Balkonda MLA Vemula Prashanth Reddy said detaining journalists at night and conducting raids on their homes was against democratic norms, especially when the law allows the police to issue notices and su

Well known journalist Charlotte Grieve is leaving The Age after seven years and joining the ABC from February. Announcing the move on LinkedIn, Grieve said: "I finished up at The Age this week after joining as a trainee just over seven years ago. It's hard to put into words how grateful I am for all the opportunities I was given and the people I met along the way. I never got to meet Michael Gordon, but his quote on the newsroom wall says it all.  "I was lucky enough to go on two fellowships through the fund he left behind, travelling with Jason South to the outback for reporting trips I'll never forget. The job is a true privilege, and the passion, energy and chaos that goes into putting out a newspaper every day is nothing short of magic. Too many people to name to say thanks but forever indebted to my editors Mathew Dunckley and Michael Bachelard who have backed me from day one.  "I'll be joining the ABC in February, and can't wait to s