Mumbai, October 12: Brands like Parle Products and Bajaj have taken the decision to not advertise on news channels that broadcast toxic content.  This has resulted in #ParleG trending on Twitter on Monday morning as netizens laud the brand's decision. According to a Livemint report, key advertisers and media agencies said that they are closely tracking and re-evaluating media spends on television news channels accused of tampering with television rating points (TRPs), rumour-mongering and spreading hate. 'Fake BARC TRP Ratings' Case: Republic TV to File Criminal Defamation Case Against Mumbai Police Commissioner, Says Arnab Goswami.

Similarly, industrialist and Bajaj Auto managing director Rajiv Bajaj told CNBC TV18 on Thursday that his company has blacklisted three channels for endorsing toxic content. Parle-G Logs Best Sales in 8 Decades During Lockdown Period, Netizens Celebrate Biscuit Maker's Unique Milestone on Social Media.

The move comes after the Mumbai Police last week said its probe into a complaint by TV viewership measurement agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) had unearthed a racket of TRP-fixing by some channels, including news broadcaster Republic TV.

Police said that Republic TV and two other local Mumbai channels were involved in manipulating the crucial data which indicates which TV programmes are viewed the most and is often used by advertisers for decisions related to ad spend.

Arnab Goswami, editor-in-chief of Republic TV, has denied all allegations and put out a video message on the channel’s website on Friday stating the “channel’s name was not mentioned in the FIR”. He claimed the channel was being targeted for its coverage of the Sushant Singh Rajput case and added that the channel would sue the police.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 12, 2020 08:50 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).