Attaullah Tarar, Pakistan’s Minister for Information and Broadcasting, has announced that government will not give advertisements to a private news channel which recently fired 170 employees.
He made the statement while speaking to journalists, who had staged a walkout from the Press Gallery of the National Assembly on May 11, 2026. Journalists associated with the Parliamentary Reporters Association (PRA) had staged a protest against layoffs and non-payment of dues by some private TV channels. Following this, a delegation of MNAs and senators, including Tarar visited the media room to discuss the issue.
The potential ad ban bears grave consequences for the TV channel as Pakistan’s electronic media remains primarily reliant on public sector and commercial advertisements revenues for its sustenance.
The federal minister also remarked that the management of another TV channel, which hasn’t paid salaries for the last three months to its employees, has been summoned to Islamabad to resolve the issue.
He had earlier remarked that the protection of media workers is government’s top priority, adding that matters related to job security of journalists will be resolved.
