The Times of India
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20 August 2013 front page of the Kolkata edition of The Times of India | |
| Type | Daily newspaper |
|---|---|
| Format | Broadsheet |
| Owner(s) | The Times Group |
| Editor-in-chief | Jaideep Bose |
| Founded | 3 November 1838 |
| Political alignment | Conservative[1] |
| Language | English |
| Headquarters | The Times of India Building, Dr. D.N. Road, Mumbai-400001, India |
| Circulation | 3,321,702 Daily[2] (as of December 2013) |
| Sister newspapers |
The Economic Times Navbharat Times Maharashtra Times Ei Samay |
| OCLC number | 23379369 |
| Website |
timesofindia |
The Times of India (TOI) is an Indian English-language daily newspaper. It is the third-largest newspaper in India by circulation and largest selling English-language daily in the world according to Audit Bureau of Circulations (India).[2][3] According to the Indian Readership Survey (IRS) 2012, the Times of India is the most widely read English newspaper in India with a readership of 7.643 million. This ranks the Times of India as the top English daily in India by readership.[4]
It is owned and published by Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. which is owned by the Sahu Jain family. In the Brand Trust Report 2012, Times of India was ranked 88th among India's most trusted brands and subsequently, according to the Brand Trust Report 2013, Times of India was ranked 100th among India's most trusted brands. In 2014 however, Times of India was ranked 174th among India's most trusted brands according to the Brand Trust Report 2014, a study conducted by Trust Research Advisory.[5][6]
History
Beginnings
The Times of India issued its first edition 3 November 1838 as The Bombay Times and Journal of Commerce.[7][8] The paper published Wednesdays and Saturdays under the direction of Raobahadur Narayan Dinanath Velkar, a Maharashtrian Reformist, and contained news from Britain and the world, as well as the Indian Subcontinent. In 1850, it began to publish daily editions.
In 1860, editor Robert Knight (1825–1892) bought the Indian shareholders interests, merged with rival Bombay Standard, and started India's first news agency. It wired Times dispatches to papers across the country and became the Indian agent for Reuters news service. In 1861, he changed the name from the Bombay Times and Standard to The Times of India. Knight fought for a press free of prior restraint or intimidation, frequently resisting the attempts by governments, business interests, and cultural spokesmen and led the paper to national prominence.[9] In the 19th century, this newspaper company employed more than 800 people and had a sizeable circulation in India and Europe.
Bennett & Coleman Ownership
Subsequently, The Times of India saw its ownership change several times until 1892, when Thomas Bennett and Frank Morris Coleman, who drowned in the 1915 sinking of the SS Persia, acquired the newspaper through their new company, Bennet, Coleman & Co. Ltd.
Dalmiya Ownership
In 1946, they sold the company to sugar magnate Ramkrishna Dalmiya, of the then-famous industrial family, Dalmiyas, for Rs 20 million. In 1948, Dalmiya sold the newspaper to his son-in-law Sahu Shanti Prasad Jain, a member of the Kunal Jain group of Bijnore, Uttar Pradesh, to pay a debt he owed to an insurance company.
Under Government of India
In the early 1960s, Jain was imprisoned on charges of selling newsprint on the black market,and the Government of India assumed control of the newspaper replacing half of the directors and appointing a Bombay (now Mumbai) High Court judge as the Chairman.
Jain Family
In 1976, during the emergency in India, the government transferred ownership of the newspaper back to Ashok Jain (Shanti Prasad’s son and the father of Samir Jain and Vineet Jain).[10]
Editions and publications
The Times of India is published by the media group Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. The company, along with its other group companies, known as The Times Group, also publishes Ahmedabad Mirror; Bangalore Mirror; Bangalore Times, Delhi Times; The Economic Times; Ei Samay, (a Bengali daily); the Maharashtra Times, (a Marathi-language daily broadsheet); Mumbai Mirror; the Navbharat Times, (a Hindi-language daily broadsheet); and Pune Mirror.
The Times of India has its markets in major cities such as Mumbai,[11] Ahmedabad, Aurangabad, Bangalore, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Calicut, Chandigarh, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Guwahati, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolhapur, Kolkata, Madurai, Patna, Puducherry, Pune, Kochi, Lucknow, Nagpur, Nashik, Panaji, Mysore, Hubli, Mangalore, Raipur, Ranchi, Surat, Trichy, Trivandrum, Varanasi and Visakhapatnam.
Controversies
FERA Violation charges
- On 3 July 1998, Ashok Kumar Jain, then Chairman of Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd, parent company of The Times of India was arrested in his Mumbai residence, after 18 months of legal wrangling with Enforcement Directorate for alleged violations of illegal transfer of funds to a tune of US$1.25 million to an overseas account. Shortly after arrest Ashok Jain complained of chest pain and was taken to hospital. He later went to the USA where he died 4 February 1999, following heart surgery.[12][13][14][15]
The then BJP leader Atal Bihari Vajpayee accused the then Prime minister I. K. Gujral of shielding the Jains due to family relations.[12]
Editorial controversies
- On 26 June 1975, the day after India declared a state of emergency, the Bombay edition of The Times of India carried an entry in its obituary column that read "D.E.M O'Cracy beloved husband of T.Ruth, father of L.I.Bertie, brother of Faith, Hope and Justica expired on 26 June".[16] The move was a critique of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's 21-month state of emergency, which is now widely known as "the Emergency" and seen by many as a roundly authoritarian era of Indian government.[17][18]
- In 1998, the summary dismissal of editor H.K. Dua was attributed to his pursuit of an independent editorial policy that did not suit the interests of the promoters of the group.[19] The People's Union for Civil Liberties filed a complaint in this matter with Press Council of India (PCI). The PCI censured The Times of India.[20] H.K. Dua later claimed that his dismissal was retaliation for his refusal to comply with Ashok Jain's request to help him out of his FERA violation case by ED, using his editorial position to build public support besides lobbying with politicians.
Times Group Network
- Zigwheels: A website focused on cars, including reviews, road tests, and other special features.
- Speaking Tree: A spiritual network intended to allow spiritual seekers to link spiritual seekers with established practitioners.
- Healthmeup: A health, diet, and fitness website.
- Cricbuzz: In Nov 2014, Times Internet Acquired Cricbuzz website. A website focused on cricket live updated, news etc.
Notable employees
- Sham Lal, Editor and Scholar
- Samir Jain, Vice-Chairman & Publisher
- Vineet Jain, MD, current Chairperson
- Jug Suraiya (associate editor, columnist, "Jugular Vein," cartoonist, "Dubyaman II")
- Swaminathan Aiyar (columnist, "Swaminomics")
- R. K. Laxman ("You Said It" editorial cartoon, featuring the famous Common Man)
- Alfred D'Cruz, foremost Chief Sub-Editor from 1947-1982
- Shobha De, columnist
- M J Akbar, Columnist, "The Siege Within" and former Editorial Team
- Chetan Bhagat, Columnist, Sunday TOI
Recent updates
In late 2006, Times Group acquired Vijayanand Printers Limited (VPL). VPL previously published two Kannada newspapers, Vijay Karnataka and Usha Kiran, and an English daily, Vijay Times. Vijay Karnataka was the leader in the Kannada newspaper segment then.[21]
The paper launched a Chennai edition, 12 April 2008. The paper's main rivals in India are Hindustan Times, The Indian Express and The Hindu, which are second, third, and fourth by circulation, respectively.[22] It launched a Kolhapur edition, February 2013.
References
- ↑ "World Newspapers and Magazines: India". Worldpress.org. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Details of language wise most circulated dailies for the audit period July-December 2013". Audit Bureau of Circulations. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "National Newspapers Total Circulation". International Federation of Audit Bureaux of Circulations (IFABC). 2011. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "Indian Readership Survey – World's Largest Survey" (PDF). Newswatch.in. 30 June 2011. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
- ↑ "India's Most Trusted Brands 2014". TRA. November 2013. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "Samsung named India's most trusted brand". Times of India. 30 January 2014. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "The Times of India". Encyclopædia Britannica. 15 April 2013. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 "The Times of India turns the Times of Colour". Televisionpoint.com. 30 April 2006. Retrieved 2007-10-16.
- ↑ Hirschmann, Edwin (2008). Robert Knight: Reforming Editor in Victorian India. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-569622-6.
- ↑ Subramanian, Samanth (1 December 2012). "Supreme Being: How Samir Jain created the modern Indian newspaper industry". Caravan. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "Online Mumbai Newspaper". Mid Day. 24 April 2014.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Trying times: Editorial changes in The Times of India raise disturbing questions". India Today. 7 July 1997. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "Ashok Jain arrested". The Indian Express. 4 July 1998. Retrieved 2013-05-18.
- ↑ Mahalingam, Sudha (18–31 July 1998). "Ashok Jain is arrested by the Enforcement Directorate". Frontline. 15, No. 15. ISSN 0970-1710. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "A newspaper scandal: Editorial changes in The Times of India raise disturbing questions". Fontline. 15, No. 12. 6–19 June 1998. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ Austin, Granville (1999). Working a democratic constitution: the Indian experience. Oxford University Press. p. 295. ISBN 978-0195648881. (subscription required (help)).
- ↑ "New book flays Indira Gandhi's decision to impose Emergency". IBN Live News. 30 May 2011. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ Desai, Akshayakumar Ramanlal (17 November 1986). Violation of Democratic Rights in India. Bombay: Popular Prakashan. p. 208. ISBN 978-0861321308. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ Mahalingam, Sudha (6–19 June 1998). "A newspaper scandal: Editorial changes in The Times of India raise disturbing questions". Frontline. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
- ↑ Know PUCL. People's Union for Civil Liberties. October 2010. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "Times Group acquires Vijayanand Printers". The Times of India. 15 June 2006. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
- ↑ "TN CM launches Chennai edition of Times of India". The Economic Times. 13 April 2008. Retrieved 2014-11-10.
Further reading
- Auletta, Ken: "Citizens Jain – Why India's Newspaper Industry is Thriving". The New Yorker, 8 October 2012, Pages 52 to 61.
- Hirschmann, Edwin. "An Editor Speaks for the Natives: Robert Knight in 19th Century India," Journalism Quarterly (1986) 63#2 pp 260–267
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Times of India. |
- Official website (Mobile)
- The Times of India ePaper (E-Paper – Digital replica of the newspaper)
- Times Syndication Service Content licensing and syndication wing of The Times Group.
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