No, we're not talking about the Liberal party, not this time, though that leadership frission is getting some serious coverage this morning across the media - more on that in a moment. Let's start today with yet another exclusive by Nine's Walkley Award-winning journo Nick McKenzie under the BUILDING BAD logo which gets major coverage in The Age, where there are two angles - the McKenzie story and another ('Building violence returns') where he is joined by scribes Kieran Rooney, William Davis and Matt Dennien. The main story by McKenzie ('ROTTING FROM THE TOP') covers a report into the CFMEU's links to alleged corruption and in particular the "censored CFMEU report".  At The Age those two front page stories flow over inside.   The McKenzie story also appears on the front page - and again goes inside too - at The Sydney Morning Herald and is also covered by Nine's other daily, The Australian Financial Revie

India Today will host the Tamil Nadu Round Table in Chennai on February 11, bringing together political leaders and commentators as the state gears up for the 2026 Assembly elections.  Chief Minister M K Stalin will open the event with remarks on governance and development priorities. A multi-party discussion will feature representatives from DMK, AIADMK, BJP, Congress, and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), examining campaign strategies, language politics, Hindutva, and voter sentiment.  According to Best Media Info, a dedicated women’s panel includes Khushbu Sundar (BJP), Apsara Reddy (AIADMK), and Dr Kanimozhi NVN Somu (DMK), highlighting women’s role in state politics. Swaminathan Gurumurthy, editor of Thuglak, is slated to speak.  Other sessions include ‘The Vijay Factor’, exploring popular culture’s influence on voting, and BJP’s strategy in the south with K Annamalai and Karti Chidambaram. Education and digital governance refo

The South India Journalists Union (SIJU) has strongly condemned the alleged assault on a journalist in Chennai on February 9, calling it a serious threat to press freedom and democratic values. In a statement issued on February 10, SIJU urged the Tamil Nadu government to take immediate action against those responsible. SIJU State President R. Chandrika and State General Secretary R. Kathiravan stressed that journalists play a crucial role in highlighting public issues and serving society, often at personal risk. They said violence against media professionals is unacceptable under any circumstances and demanded a fair, transparent investigation followed by strict legal action. The union also condemned controversial remarks allegedly made by a DMDK functionary during a party meeting, in the presence of Premalatha Vijayakanth, suggesting that journalists could be assaulted inside their homes. SIJU said such statements promote hostility against the media and must be dealt with seriousl

The Press Club of India and DIGIPUB News India Foundation have raised serious concerns over what they describe as growing restrictions on press freedom following the temporary blocking of The Wire’s Instagram account and the removal of a satirical cartoon from multiple platforms. According to DIGIPUB, The Wire published an animated satirical cartoon on February 7 raising questions on parliamentary accountability. On February 9, Meta temporarily blocked The Wire’s Instagram account for nearly two hours and later removed the cartoon. On February 10, the same content was withheld on X in India. While X issued a written notice, Meta did not, and authorities offered no clear explanation on how the content violated any law. The Press Club of India said The Wire received no prior notice from the IT Ministry or any government agency before the takedown. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting later told the publication that it had not ordered the block, calling it an “error” a

Public broadcaster Prasar Bharati is accelerating its transition towards a digital-first content strategy, with the WAVES OTT platform and a new pay-per-view content acquisition framework emerging as key pillars of its expansion, especially among younger audiences.  According to information shared in Parliament, Prasar Bharati is now sourcing content for Akashvani, Doordarshan channels and its WAVES OTT platform under its Content Sourcing Policy 2024. The move reflects a broader shift from conventional television and radio broadcasting to digital content distribution.  The pay-per-view framework, launched in 2025, allows the broadcaster to acquire and distribute content specifically designed for OTT and digital platforms, including WAVES. The initiative aims to diversify programming and attract viewers who increasingly consume content online rather than through traditional broadcast channels.  The government also indicated tha

Image edited by Dinesh Raj M   It lasted about two hours. That is how long The Wire’s Instagram account disappeared from India on February 9. In digital terms, that may sound trivial. In democratic terms, it is anything but. The trigger was a 52-second satirical cartoon criticising Narendra Modi for avoiding questions in Parliament, referencing former Army chief MM Naravane’s memoir on the 2020 China standoff. What followed was telling. Users opening The Wire’s Instagram page were met with a stark notice: the account was “not available in India” due to a legal request. The account had over 1.3 million followers. The satire vanished. So did the newsroom, briefly.   When questioned, officials from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting denied blocking the account. Informally, The Wire learned that the ministry had asked Meta to restrict the cartoon alone, and the platform had blocked the entire account “in error”. Access wa

Over 800 journalists and media workers in Tripura staged a three-hour mass sit-in protest in front of Rabindra Bhavan in Agartala on Monday, demanding action on a 11-point charter of issues from the state government.  The protestors, from various media organisations, submitted the charter to Chief Minister Manik Saha, calling for urgent steps on press freedom, journalist safety, fair access to information, better working conditions, and other professional concerns.  According to the Tripura Chronicle, media professionals from various organisations carried banners and raised their voices, urging the state government to respond to their memorandum.  The demonstration underscores growing unease among the journalistic community in Tripura regarding professional rights, protection, and government accountability on media matters.