Samaa TV Faces Deepening Crisis Amid Leadership Resignations and Program Closures

Samaa TV faces a deepening administrative and financial crisis as top executives resign and flagship programs close, exposing growing instability and leadership cracks within one of Pakistan’s leading news networks.

By Imran Malik | MediaBites / Source: ImranJunior.com

Pakistan’s leading private news channel Samaa TV is reportedly facing an escalating administrative and financial crisis, with senior leadership resignations and internal rifts shaking the network’s stability.

According to inside sources, Group President and Director News have tendered their resignations, though the management has yet to formally accept them. The resignations come in the wake of Chief Marketing Officer Imran Ansari’s departure — a move that insiders describe as the beginning of a “major structural unraveling.”

Industry insiders say the channel’s administration has issued a verbal directive to discontinue senior journalist Iftikhar Ahmed’s flagship program, a decision that has further deepened internal unrest. Reports suggest that anchors, including Absar Alam, Najam Sethi, Hassan Nisar, and Talat Hussain, have grown disillusioned with the network’s management and are exploring alternate opportunities.

Sources claim that following salary cuts imposed on top-tier anchors and executives, chaos has gripped the newsroom. What was once a thriving media venture under veteran broadcaster late Zafar Siddiqui’s vision now appears to be struggling for direction under its current real estate-backed ownership.

Media circles are abuzz with speculation that Samaa’s management recently approached Khurram Kaleem of City News Network and Rehan Ahmed of Hum News for leadership roles. However, according to “Pappu,” a well-connected industry insider, both declined the offers despite rumors suggesting one had initially shown interest.

“The atmosphere at Samaa has become toxic after the recent power shifts and executive exits,” one employee said, requesting anonymity. “Even loyalists are reconsidering their future here.”

Meanwhile, insiders confirm that the Group President plans to continue his own program on air but has stepped back from administrative duties, signaling widening cracks at the top.

Once hailed as a pioneering channel founded by Zafar Siddiqui, Samaa TV’s decline reflects a broader crisis of credibility and sustainability in Pakistan’s media industry, where real estate-backed investments and political alignments increasingly dictate newsroom priorities.

As Samaa’s troubles mount, observers fear the network’s ongoing turmoil may soon claim more high-profile departures — unless decisive leadership and editorial independence are restored.