 | |
| Type | Radio, broadcast news, discussions |
|---|---|
| Country | India |
| Broadcast area | Worldwide |
| Network | Zee Media Corporation |
| Headquarters | Noida, India |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Picture format | 1080i HDTV (downscaled to 4:3 576i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Essel Group |
| History | |
| Launched | 15 August 2016 |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Watch Live |
| Website | wionews |
| Availability | |
| Terrestrial | |
| Sky UK (United Kingdom) | LCN 523[1] |
| Freeview (United Kingdom) | LCN 287[2] |
| Etisalat (United Arab Emirates) | LCN 550[3] |
| BEAM TV (Philippines) | Channel x.3 (planned) |
| Cignal TV (Philippines) | Channel 178 (planned) |
| Streaming media | |
| Live Streaming (International) | |
| Live Streaming (India) | |
| Live streaming (India) | |
WION (/ˈwi.ɑːn/, WEE-ahn;[4] World is One News) is an Indian English language news channel headquartered in Noida, India.[5][6] WION is owned by the Essel Group and is a part of the Zee Media network of channels, whose majority owner is Subhash Chandra and family.[7][8] As of 2021, WION had presence in over 190 countries.[9]
It has faced scrutiny from multiple foreign countries including China and Canada over its coverage, and in 2022 was blocked from YouTube for a period of time for broadcasting a speech by Sergey Lavrov, the head of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The channel's former Pakistan bureau chief was forced into exile after a failed kidnapping attempt in Islamabad.[10][11] The channel has been accused of promoting misinformation regarding COVID-19.[12][13]
History
Zee Media hired Rohit Gandhi as the founder and first editor-in-chief to establish the channel in August 2015.[14] Its simulcast was launched on its website in many countries as a free-to-air satellite service on 15 June 2016.[15] The television channel began airing on 15 August 2016.[16] The channel was made available on Google Assistant in 2020.[17] Sudhir Chaudhary served as its editor-in-chief after Gandhi until he left in 2021.[18] Before switching to CNN-News18, Palki Sharma Upadhyay served for 4 years and resigned in September 2022.[19] Past team includes Naveen Kapoor and Kartikeya Sharma.
In 2021, the appointment of M.J. Akbar, an Indian journalist and politician who has been accused of sexual assault by women, to WION as an "editorial consultant" was met with controversy, with more than 150 journalists signing a statement demanding that Akbar be removed by WION and Zee News.[20][needs update]
Staff
The current team includes Sidhant Sibal of DD News, who joined the media corporation on 1 April 2018. Madhu Soman[21] joined as a chief business officer in 2022 but left in 2024. Rohit Banerjee looks after the branded content. While Molly Gambhir replaces Palki Sharma's position on Gravitas and Gravitas Plus to become the leading anchor of the WION channel, other associated journalists include Digvijay Singh Deo, Shivan Chanana, Rabin Sharma, Ieshan Wani, Esha Hanspal, Priyanka Sharma and Alyson le Grange.
The channel's Pakistan bureau chief, Taha Siddiqui, was forced into exile after a failed kidnapping attempt in Islamabad. He was replaced by Anas Mallick. Anas Mallick resigned in July 2025.[10][11]
Content and responses
Conflicts with China
In 2020, the Chinese Embassy in India lodged a formal protest against WION for its interview with Joseph Wu, head of Taiwan's foreign relations. The embassy criticized WION for promoting what it called "Taiwan Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) separatist activities", claiming it contradicted India's adherence to the One-China policy. The embassy stated that Taiwan is an inalienable part of China, as recognized by UN resolutions, and urged WION to respect India's official position. It warned that any challenge to China's territorial integrity regarding Taiwan would be strongly opposed.[22][23]
In the same year, the Chinese government blocked access to the WION website, as confirmed by GreatFire.org, a Chinese internet monitoring watchdog.[24][25] Earlier WION has faced criticism from the Chinese government for a coverage on what it described as a "cover-up" of COVID-19 pandemic situation in China. In March, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian blocked WION on Twitter. Chinese diplomats in India also critiqued its reporting. In June, the Global Times, linked to the Chinese Communist Party, named WION in an article, advising it to think "independently".[26]
Ban in Nepal
In July 2020, cable operators in Nepal ceased broadcasting several Indian news channels, including WION, in response to airing of a video that was deemed to be disrespectful to K. P. Sharma Oli, the prime minister of Nepal and a leader of Nepal Communist Party.[27] After a month, some cable operators decided to lift the ban following public backlash from Nepali viewers.[28][29]
2022 YouTube block
On 22 March 2022, WION was blocked from YouTube for "violating YouTube's community guidelines". YouTube had taken objection to a video posted on 10 March, broadcasting a speech by Sergey Lavrov, the head of Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, denying the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[30] YouTube unblocked the channel on 26 March after a social media campaign by WION.[31]
Alleged interference in Canadian issues
WION was cited in a September 2024 report from RRM Canada on "Potential Foreign Information Manipulation, and Interference following PM Statement on Killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar". The report examined content from popular Indian state-aligned media outlets and influencers, including WION, finding that "Modi-aligned outlets amplified several state-supported narratives about Prime Minister Trudeau, "Canada's High Commissioner to India, Canada's national security agencies, Canada's Punjabi Sikh diaspora, and Hardeep Singh Nijjar's political beliefs." The report also noted the “massive digital footprint” of some of these media outlets in comparison to Canadian media outlets, and the likely reach they had to global and Canadian audiences.[32][33][34][35]
Litigation
After former anchor Palki Sharma Upadhyay announced her retirement from WION and the creation of a new talk show in CNN News18, WION filed a lawsuit against Upadhyay, saying that "confidential and proprietary Zee information" was taken by Upadhyay, and demanded that Upadhyay should continue to work for WION until December 2022 and pay for damages worth ₹2 crores. However, the Delhi High Court refused WION's appeal, and the next hearing of the case was delayed until March 2023.[36]
References
- ^ "WION is now available in the UK on Sky Channel 523".
- ^ "WION launched on UK's DTT platform Freeview".
- ^ "Elife Family Channels List".
- ^ WION (15 June 2016). WION - The Voice of South Asia (Video). Archived from the original on 28 October 2025 – via YouTube.
- ^ Chauhan, Shubhang (8 December 2016). "English News channel of Zee group' WION' announces its official launch". India.com.
- ^ "About Us". WION. 4 December 2024.
- ^ "Subhash Chandra and Family". india.mom-gmr.org. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ "Disclaimer". WION. 4 December 2024.
- ^ Team, DNA Web. "WION takes giant strides, marks its presence in 190 countries worldwide". DNA India. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ a b Jorgic, Drazen (10 January 2018). "Pakistani journalist critical of military escapes kidnap attempt". Reuters.
- ^ a b Siddiqui, Taha (8 January 2019). "Opinion | I'm a journalist who fled Pakistan, but I no longer feel safe in exile". The Washington Post.
- ^ AFP (1 April 2020). "Is The Hantavirus A 'New' Disease Emerging From China? A FactCheck". www.boomlive.in. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ "COVID-19 vaccine did not cause the death of a Portuguese woman, contrary to social media posts' suggestions". Health Feedback. 8 January 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ "Zee Media to launch English news broadcast, appoints Rohit Gandhi as editor-in-chief". firstpost.com. 17 August 2015. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
- ^ "WION on Periscope: "WION launch"". Periscope.tv. 15 June 2016. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
- ^ "Atlanta's Archith Seshadri debuts as an anchor on Zee Media's global English news channel". NRI Pulse. Retrieved 17 September 2016.
- ^ "Zee News and WION now on Google Assistant". ANI News. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "Is Aajtak's bet on Sudhir Chaudhary paying off?". 21 October 2022.
- ^ "Palki Sharma Upadhyay, the face of the WION news channel, quits: Report". Newslaundry. 2 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
- ^ "158 personalities write to Zee Media against MJ Akbar's appointment in WION Over 150 Journalists Sign Letter Asking WION News to Remove M.J. Akbar". The Wire. 9 September 2021.
- ^ "Zee Media appoints Madhu Soman as a Chief Business Officer, WION - Exchange4media". Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media. August 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
- ^ "China tries to dictate terms to Indian media, objects to WIONs interview with Taiwan FM Joseph Wu". Zee News. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "Remarks by Spokesperson of Chinese Embassy in India on certain Indian media's interview with the head of Taiwan's foreign affairs office". in.china-embassy.gov.cn. Archived from the original on 27 April 2024. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ Outlook, Team Tech (2 July 2020). "Now China blocks Indian News Channel WION". The Tech Outlook. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "www.wionews.com is 100% blocked in China | GreatFire Analyzer". en.greatfire.org. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "WION Website Blocked in China After India Bans 59 Chinese Apps, Including TikTok And UC Browser". www.india.com. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ Giri, Anil; Raj Neupane, Suresh (10 July 2020). "Cable operators ban Indian news channels in response to 'insulting' video about prime minister". The Kathmandu Post. Archived from the original on 9 January 2025. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "Nepal Partially Lifts Ban On Indian Private News Channels". www.ndtv.com. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ "Ban on Indian private news channels lifted in Nepal". Wion. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2025.
- ^ Team, N. L. (26 March 2022). "YouTube blocks WION for 'trivialising' Russia-Ukraine war". Newslaundry. Retrieved 26 March 2022.
- ^ "YouTube unblocks WION after 12 hours and 25,000 posts in support of channel". DNA India. Retrieved 4 April 2022.
- ^ Mago, Shivani (18 October 2024). "Month-old Canadian report flagged posts, news from 'Modi-aligned media' as 'foreign interference'". ThePrint. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ Seli, Yeshi (20 October 2024). "Canada's RRM report claims Indian media shaped negative narratives about Trudeau". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 25 October 2024.
- ^ "Potential Foreign Information Manipulation and Interference following PM Statement on Killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar" (PDF) (PDF). 12 September 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ "Canadian report highlights Indian media's role in escalating bilateral tensions". New India Abroad. Retrieved 27 March 2025.
- ^ Tiwari, Ayush (23 November 2022). "Why Zee Media won't let Palki Sharma Upadhyay join Network18". News Laundry. Retrieved 23 November 2022.
