Varda Naqvi of City 42 has been elected a director of the Pakistan Broadcasters Association at the body’s Annual General Body Meeting in Karachi on Monday. She was elected as one of three television representatives chosen for the association’s Board of Directors.
The election, held at the annual meeting of broadcasters, also settled the association’s other leading offices. Shakeel Masud Hussain was named chairman, Mian Amer Mahmood was elected secretary general, Syed Ahmed Shah became vice chairman, and Sultana Siddiqui was chosen as senior vice chairperson.
The Pakistan Broadcasters Association represents television broadcasters in the country, and its board elections are watched closely within the media industry. The association speaks for its member channels on matters affecting broadcasting, and its leadership plays a role in discussions with regulators, advertisers and other stakeholders in the media landscape.
Naqvi’s election as a director places a City 42 representative on the board at a time when the television industry is navigating rapid change. News channels today compete not only with each other but with digital platforms, social media and streaming services, all of which have reshaped how audiences watch, and how advertising money moves.
Television representatives on the board carry the concerns of news and entertainment channels into the association’s decision-making. Their role includes raising issues faced by channels in their daily operations, from the cost of running a newsroom to the challenges of keeping audiences engaged in a crowded media market.
The annual general body meeting in Karachi brought together members from across the industry, and the election of a new board is a routine but significant moment in the association’s calendar. It sets the leadership that will guide the body over the coming term, and it signals which voices will carry weight in its internal debates.
For City 42, a Lahore-based news channel, having its representative elected to the board is a mark of standing within the industry. It reflects the channel’s position among broadcasters and gives it a direct say in the association’s affairs.
The other office-bearers elected alongside Naqvi bring their own experience to the board. A chairman, secretary general, vice chairman and senior vice chairperson together form the core leadership team, and their combined backgrounds will shape how the association approaches the issues ahead.
As the new board takes up its responsibilities, broadcasters will be looking to it for leadership on the questions facing the industry: how to sustain quality journalism, how to adapt to changing audience habits, and how to represent the interests of television in a media environment that is changing faster than ever.
