This week, Newslaundry's Abhinandan Sekhri, Raman Kirpal and Anand Vardhan are joined by editor-in-chief of the News Minute, Dhanya Rajendran and Centre for Policy Research fellow Rahul Verma. 

The discussion begins with the press freedom rankings and India's slump to the 161st spot in the list of 180 countries. The panel delves into the parameters of such rankings and the likely objective method to understand such a large sample size. Rahul talks about the "lack of transparency" in such an analysis, while Abhinandan says he feels this is "the most hard-hitting time for the media since he first started."

The discussion then moves to the Karnataka assembly elections and the issues that have garnered the most attention in the state, including corruption, price rises, and the prominence of Hindutva outfits like Bajrang Dal. Dhanya gives a deeper idea of the ground realities, and Rahul breaks down voter behaviour in Karnataka. 

The panel then touches upon the remarks by Supreme Court Judge BV Nagarathna on the inefficient self-regulation by TV channels and the need for a regulatory body. 

Tune in!