-Newslaundry.com The data shows NewsX, News Nation and India News got more ad money than Republic and Times Now. But numbers released under the RTI Act tell another story. In February this year, the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity, or DAVP, released data on the Narendra Modi government’s advertisement expenditure in the media. It shows that Republic TV and Times Now, the two most watched English news channels, received fewer government ads...

-The Hindu ‘Largesse’ for non-existent entities from DAVP It was a casual enquiry, calling up publishers of some “newspapers” across the country. To the surprise of the officials who made the calls, they were found to be existing only on paper. In one instance, the dialled number connected to a laundry shop and in another, to a call centre. Yet, with a claimed circulation of 25,000, these non-existent publications had the status of...

-Outlook   The UPA-II government spent nearly Rs 187 crore to publicise schemes under the 'Bharat Nirman' programme in the election year 2013-14. According to an RTI response by the Directorate of Advertising & Visual Publicity, the Manmohan Singh-led government spent Rs 186.98 crore in the election year 2013-14. Giving details of Bharat Nirman campaign of UPA-2, DAVP said in 2013-14, the election year, Rs 186.98 crore were spent whereas in 2012-13, the figure...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: BJP prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi's claim that UPA had forgotten Sardar Patel till this year is far off the mark. The government's publicity arm, directorate of advertising and visual publicity (DAVP), has spent Rs 8.5 crore in advertisements to commemorate Sardar Patel's birth anniversary over the last four years. Ironically, the shoe may be on the other foot. In its tenure - between 1999 and...