Prasar Bharati Defends DD News Logo Amidst Accusations of 'Saffronisation'

Prasar Bharati, India's state-owned broadcaster, recently changed the logo of its Hindi news channel, DD News, from red to orange, sparking criticism from the opposition and media experts about potential 'saffronisation' due to the color's association with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The redesign, including changes to branding, set design, and overall visual aesthetics, was announced on April 16. Critics believe the shift to an orange logo aligns with the BJP's symbolic color, raising concerns about bias in the state-owned broadcaster's content. Gaurav Dwivedi, CEO of Prasar Bharati, dismissed these concerns, stating that the choice of orange was part of branding updates across the network and had already been applied to the English news channel, DD India, ahead of India's G20 presidency. Both news channels now share similar visual aesthetics.

Dwivedi emphasized that the color's association with Hindutva or the BJP was not a factor in the selection. He explained that orange, yellow, and black have high recall value, and the decision was based on scientific reasoning rather than political motives. Furthermore, the DD News logo follows the redesign of DD National's logo to saffron/orange and blue last year. Former Prasar Bharati CEO Jawhar Sircar, now a Rajya Sabha member from the Trinamool Congress party, criticized the change as another form of "saffronisation." Sircar accused Prasar Bharati of shifting towards government propaganda, renaming it "Prachar Bharati." The debate over the new DD News logo highlights the broader conversation about the role of state-owned media in India and the importance of impartiality in news broadcasting. Prasar Bharati maintains the changes were for visual aesthetics and branding, while concerns about political influence persist.

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