The defunct Vaishali Press Club was dissolved and a new organisation, the Vaishali Journalist Union, was formed during a meeting chaired by senior journalist Pandey Brajnandan Prasad recently. An 11-member committee was formed, with Dainik Bhaskar Bureau Chief Jyoti Kumar Nirala as executive president, Dainik Jagran Bureau Chief Ravi Shankar Shukla as vice president, Hindustan Bureau Chief Vinay Mani Tiwari and Prabhat Khabar Bureau Chief Abhishek Shashwat as vice president. Rashtriya Sahara Bureau Chief Pandey Brajnandan Sahay was appointed secretary, while Prof. Amresh Srivastava, Ranjesh Kumar Jha and Manish Kumar were appointed Joint Secretaries. Rahul Kumar Singh was named treasurer, while Amar Choubey and Rupesh Kumar Singh were appointed assistant secretaries. The union also decided to form committees at the subdivision and block levels and inform the administration about the new organisation. The meeting was attended by several members of the media fraternity, Dainik Bhask

The Kerala High Court has directed the Kochi City Police Commissioner to provide protection to Malayalam television journalist Aparna Kurup and safeguard her residence. Kurup moved the court after allegedly facing cyber harassment and death threats following a television programme she hosted on remarks made by Sunni Muslim scholar Kanthapuram A.P. Aboobacker Musaliyar concerning women. According to her petition, her photograph and residential address were circulated on social media as part of the alleged online attacks. Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas also directed the police to maintain law and order around Kurup’s residence and ensure that she faces no obstruction or interference until the court decides her petition, The Hindu reported.  

Former Tehelka founder editor and senior journalist Tarun Tejpal surrendered before a Goa court on Monday to serve his 10-year sentence in the 2013 rape and sexual harassment case involving a junior colleague. The Bombay High Court, on August 6, overturned a 2021 sessions court acquittal and convicted Tejpal under provisions of the Indian Penal Code relating to rape, sexual harassment and criminal force against a woman. Tejpal challenged the High Court verdict in the Supreme Court on August 20. On August 25, the Supreme Court directed him to surrender within two weeks and said his appeal would be listed after he submitted his surrender certificate by September 22. Tejpal surrendered before the Additional Sessions Court at Mapusa and was subsequently sent to Central Jail at Colvale, The Scroll reported. He was arrested in November 2013 and spent seven months in custody before being granted bail in July 2014.  

Arena Media India, the media brand of Havas Media India, has won the integrated media mandate for Ashiana Housing following a competitive multi-agency pitch.  The agency will manage the account from its Gurugram office, handling media planning and buying, audience targeting, strategic partnerships and data-led solutions to strengthen the brand’s market presence and support business growth.  Ankur Gupta, joint managing director of Ashiana Housing Limited, said, "Arena Media India's strategic approach, collaborative mindset and strong understanding of our business ambitions made them the ideal choice."  Uday Mohan, chief operating officer of Havas Media and Arena Media India, added, "The appointment reflects Arena Media India's continued momentum and our ability to deliver integrated media solutions that create measurable business impact."  Archana Aggarwal, chief growth officer of Havas Media

​​​​​Heba Khan joins Fleishman Hillard Heba Khan has been appointed senior PR consultant at Fleishman Hillard Australia.  She joins the team from Burson, where she was an account executive and worked across DIALOGUE and SBM Marketing Communications previously. Grace Gollasch joins Clear Hayes Consulting Grace Gollasch has joined Clear Hayes Consulting as a PR account manager.  On LinkedIn, she wrote that she swapped London for Sydney and journalism for PR.  She was most recently a reporter at Marketing Week in the UK and worked across IRT Group, Coal Coast magazine, ADHERe, Wollongong University, EQ MInds, Mediaweek and MediaCat Magazine.  Louisa Parkinson moves to Elysee Collective Louisa Parkinson has started a new role as senior account executive at Elysee Collective.  She joins the team from DEC PR. Parkinson was a PR intern at TBWA\Worldwide. Emma Rogerson joins Teach Us Consent  Teach Us Consent has appointed Emma Rogerson

Veteran broadcaster Peter Thompson has died aged 73 in Sydney, following a long battle with Parkinson’s disease and a recent bout of pneumonia.  His family remembered him as a “generous spirit who was widely admired”.  ABC Sydney paid tribute to the veteran on socials: "Thompson hosted several ABC TV and radio programs, such as Talking Heads, over a career spanning four decades from the 1970s." (Talking Heads profiled prominent Australians across 238 episodes between 2005 and 2010.) He was also a passionate environmental campaigner, known for opposing the damming of Tasmania's Franklin River in the 1980s. In a statement, renowned environmentalist Bob Brown said of Thompson: "He was an early advocate and media star who had a pivotal role in saving the Franklin River wilderness. Appalled by the flooding of Lake Pedder, he won public debates with advocates for damming the Franklin River, including former Labor Premier ‘Electric&rsq

Independent journalist Divya Srivastava has alleged she faced online abuse and threats after questioning Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at a press interaction in Lucknow, the latest in a series of incidents over the past two weeks involving the harassment and intimidation of women journalists that has drawn concern from journalist bodies over the state of press freedom in the country.   The incident took place on September 11 at the BJP's Uttar Pradesh state office in Lucknow, according to multiple reports. Adityanath addressed the media and left without taking questions. A video from the event shows Srivastava questioning him from the back of the hall:   "Mukhyamantri ji sawal ka jawab dijiye? Press vartha hai yeh. Press ka jawab nahi de pa rahein hain aap, bataye! Press conference ke liye bulaya kis liye tha?" (Mr Chief Minister, please answer the question. This is a press interaction. You are unable to answer the press -- tell us! What was this press conference