They say behind every successful man there is a woman and behind every successful woman, there is lot of hard work, determination, grit, resolution, conviction and persistence of effort. Zee News editor and news analyst Ms Alka Saxena proves the adage correct. She, no doubt, is a `Woman of Substance`. Her journey as a journalist has not been an easy one but being a woman of courage she overcame all hurdles to become what she is today. And her efforts have not gone unnoticed and unacknowledged. The latest feather in her cap has been the Hindi Academy "Sahityakar Samman" for journalism for the year 2003-04. The award was conferred on 6th September `03. Alka Saxena, presently the Editor and Head of Programming of Zee News Channel, is one of the foremost television news-anchors of the country. One of the founding members of Aaj Tak, she has been a pioneer and one of the most credible news anchors on Indian Television. She is widely acclaimed by the viewers and critics for her interviewing skills during Live panel discussions in the Studios, whether analyzing elections or deliberating on any burning national or international issue. Having begun her journalistic career in 1985 with Ravivar, (from the Ananda Bazar Patrika group), the most successful Hindi news magazine ever, she set exacting standards with her investigative reporting and objectivity, right from the beginning. Here, she regularly reported for sister magazine, Sunday, as well. Getting widely awarded for her reporting and writing skills, including the Best Young Journalist Award by Institute of Journalism, she moved over to Sunday Observer as its special correspondent where she excelled with her fearless reporting on the then terrorism ridden states of Punjab and J&K. Moving to television news, she made her own road as the profession grew in India, till she, along with a small core team, became the new role models and standard bearers of television news/journalism in India.
She has received a scholarship from the European Union and Thomson Foundation to produce a documentary on environment which was shot all over Europe and India.
She has widely been invited to speak at various fora and seminars, the most recent being the South- Asia Media Conference in Islamabad, Pakistan, attended by senior journalists from Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka to discuss regional peace and bi-lateral co-operation.
As programming head of Zee News, she has imparted a new dimension to the programmes by raking up issues close to masses.
Bureau Report