“My Nation … is the latest offering from the Asianet News Group” says the About Us section of news portal My Nation. This is perhaps about to change.
A highly-placed source within My Nation told Newslaundry that the Asianet group’s financial stake in the web portal is set to change. Negotiations between the two brands are underway and a change in relationship is being finalised. “There will be a change in the holding pattern, but My Nation will be very much there. It’s a fluid platform,” said the source.
Another employee at My Nation confirmed this, and added that there have been quite a few “hush hush meetings” between the “heads”.
Asianet News is owned by Bengaluru-based investment company Jupiter Capital. Jupiter Capital was founded in 2005 by Bharatiya Janata Party politician Rajeev Chandrasekhar. Chandrasekhar is currently serving his third term as a member of parliament in the Rajya Sabha.
Chandrasekhar had campaigned for the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance during the state elections in Kerala in 2016. In its aftermath, he was given the position of vice-chairman in Kerala’s NDA. Chandrasekhar currently does not occupy any ministerial birth in either the state or the central government.
When asked about the ongoing negotiations, Abhinav Khare, CEO of Asianet News, told Newslaundry that the company routinely restructures and optimises its investment portfolio. He added: “My Nation is a fully-owned and incubated brand of Asianet News that has grown rapidly and is a valuable part of our basket of digital brands. We are fully committed to My Nation that is pivoting to something very exciting.”
“We will make the announcement at an appropriate time,” Khare said.
Asked whether My Nation will continue to remain a “fully-owned” brand of Asianet News, Khare responded that “we don’t speculate about future or comment on our investment strategy”.
In 2016, Newslaundry had reported on a leaked email from Jupiter Capital CEO Amit Gupta to the editorial heads of media outlets owned by the investment company. The email stated that editorial hires should be “right of centre in his/her editorial tonality, Pro-India, Pro-Military, and aligned to Chairman’s [Chandrasekhar] ideology”.
Asianet had also invested significant shares in Republic TV when it was launched in 2017. In 2019, editor-in-chief and managing director Arnab Goswami bought back shares and Asianet was diluted to a minority investor in the channel.
Update
An email sent by Narasimhan Vuruputoor, Senior Manager (HR) at Asianet News Media & Entertainment to the staff of My Nation, in fact, spoke of shutting down My Nation’s operations in New Delhi.
“This is to inform you that the Management has decided to pivot MyNation into a different business model. So, we are winding up the operations for MyNation in Delhi,” Vuruputoor writes.
Thanking the staff, he adds: “The decision was not an easy one for us, and will continue to provide every support in our capacity to ensure a smooth closure. Please be informed that the termination of employment contract will be effective from June 14, 2019.”
Vuruputoor did not respond to this correspondent’s calls. This piece will be updated if and when he does.
This piece has been updated to include an email sent by Narasimhan Vuruputoor, Senior Manager (HR) at Asianet News Media & Entertainment, to the staff of My Nation.