New Delhi: BJP`s Prime Ministerial candidate Narendra Modi has got more than 33 percent coverage on national TV channels during prime time in March and April, surpassing the likes of Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal and Congress` Rahul Gandhi, according to a study.
The study, done by CMS Media Lab after detailed content analysis on five national television news channels, shows that the Gujarat Chief Minister received 2,575 minutes or 33.21 percent of time given from March 1 to April 30 of poll coverage.
CMS studied Zee News along with four other channels.
Former Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal secured second spot with 799 minutes or 10.31 percent. This
marks a turnaround because the AAP chief had beat Modi and others in the period March 1 to 15.
The Gandhi family scion is third with 336 minutes (4.33 percent), closely followed by his sister and Congress star campaigner Priyanka Gandhi who got 171 minutes (2.20 percent) of the coverage in March and April.
Priyanka is in fact the most covered woman politician in the top 10 list as she beat mother Sonia Gandhi (156 minutes) and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee (90 minutes).
Incumbent Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who was the centre of attention for a period due to a controversial book written by his former media advisor Sanjaya Baru, secured 6th spot with 143 minutes, followed by Samjawadi Party`s Mulayam Singh (142 minutes), BJP`s Amit Shah (107 minutes) and MNS chief Raj Thackeray (102 minutes).
"This analysis reminds once again (as in 2009) that coverage of 2014 poll is all about personalities.
Despite extensive coverage, there was no qualitative shift in the priorities of coverage. Corruption, Election Commission and opinion polls, in that order, received more coverage among issues next to development and governance related issues," said CMS Media Lab.
