The 2026 Reporters Without Borders (RSF) index has issued a stark warning regarding the state of journalism in India, highlighting that mainstream broadcast media is exhibiting an increasingly "overt political alignment." This concerning trend is heavily driven by rapid corporate consolidation within the broadcasting sector. Consequently, this monopolization is cultivating a highly restrictive environment where impartial, critical reporting is being systematically squeezed out of prime-time television slots.

Media watchdogs argue that such alignment threatens democratic discourse by eliminating objective viewpoints and replacing them with synchronized, politically aligned narratives across major national news networks.