DND News report
Though Pakistan’s media has been flourishing for the past 20-plus years, the genre of documentary has largely been neglected, particularly in private media. In the past, the state-run Pakistan Television had been leading this genre and had even been teaching documentary production globally.
In private media, an Urdu news channel started the production of documentaries but later abandoned this genre due to financial issues, believing that documentaries require substantial budgeting, while the same one-hour or 30-minute screen time can be filled by installing three cameras in studios and inviting four guests. Therefore, the cost per minute of screen time, almost everywhere in the world, goes against documentary production. However, it is well known that international television channels continue to invest in this genre, and their documentaries have been used as “historical documentation.”
After a long time, a fresh breeze in the Pakistani media sphere has emerged from the newly launched English Channel Express24/7 through its weekly documentary show, “The Power Game.” It is an amazing, thoughtful, academic, and professional effort, and indeed a catalyst in English-language documentary production.
In its latest episode, aired on Sunday, the programme spotlighted how Iran’s expanding drone arsenal is reshaping modern warfare, challenging even the most advanced militaries.
The documentary reported that Iran has, over the past decade, developed a vast fleet of unmanned aerial vehicles, ranging from surveillance platforms to loitering munitions such as the Shahed-136. Capable of striking targets at long range, these low-cost systems are increasingly being deployed in coordinated waves to overwhelm sophisticated air defence networks.
Speaking in the show, experts highlighted the economic imbalance at the heart of drone warfare, where relatively inexpensive drones force adversaries to expend costly interceptor missiles. The report stated that such tactics have been observed in conflicts involving the United States and Israel, as well as earlier in Ukraine, underscoring the growing global footprint of this strategy.
The documentary further warned that traditional military systems, designed to counter high-end threats, are struggling against swarms of small, low-flying drones that evade radar and saturate defences.
Looking ahead, the experts cautioned that advances in artificial intelligence and autonomous swarming could make future conflicts even more complex, urging countries, including Pakistan, to adapt rapidly to the changing character of war.
