mumbai thin story lines are not in demand and since our soaps cant etch them out any thicker television channels have decided to give reality a chance unjust wars gruesome murders political mudslinging and celebrity squabbles in real life provide more unpredictable stories than saasbahu fiction no wonder news is in the news with 40odd news channels slated to be on air in the near futurewe have more news channels in india than in any other country because we make more news than anyone else says srinivasan jain resident editor mumbai ndtv which has launched two news channels in english and hindi every day there are six or seven hard breaking news stories in india whether on kashmir the underworld a rally or an explosionindian individuals organisations and events are making a lot of news today tv news has caught the imagination of the masses because were living in such newssensitive timescan the news industry which grossed only about rs 200 crore last year support a growth of so many channels some insiders from channels like zee news and aaj tak feel that after the dust settles some players will have to go others argue that viewers should have the choice of a wide range of news channelsthe news category is cluttered now so it seems as if several channels have the same positioning but viewers can always tell the difference says yash khanna senior vicepresident star news news channels dont necessarily exclude each other they complement each other toomr khanna claims that extensive research backed the idea of star news going hindialthough many regulars have given a tepid response its new avatar he insists that its viewership doubled within the first week of its language change branding hindi as a language shorn of class is tantamount to questioning our national pride and ethos he says by going hindi weve become more relevant to and more inclusive of indian audiencesstiff competition now is making news channels rethink their strategies news is no longer the business of mere reportage instead channels are choosing their target audiences and talking directly to them for instance if aaj takhindi talks to the masses aaj tak english targets the urban youngsterour english news channel targets students and young executives 18 to 34 years who live fastpaced lives says g krishnan md aaj tak we keep the news segments short and snappy for them presented by smart young news readers the packaging of news has assumed great importance and news channels are ready to add frills and flounces to reportingmr khanna promises that his news presenters will appeal to all indian families zee news has reinvented itself with brighter graphics and even doordarshan is planning a new look as a result advertisement revenue for news has increased with the popular channels earning rs 50000 for 10 seconds in prime time according to mr krishnan the news industry is tipped to earn rs 500 crore in the near futurethe line between news and entertainment is getting eroded