The BBC is losing quite a few heavy weights these days….Mason, Flanders and now Paxman:
Jeremy Paxman to step down as presenter of Newsnight
Jeremy Paxman has decided to step down as the presenter of Newsnight, a position he has held with great distinction for 25 years.
He informed Tony Hall, the Director General, and James Harding, the Director of News and Current Affairs, of his decision last summer, but with the appointment of a new editor and following a difficult period for Newsnight, Jeremy generously agreed to stay to help the new team bed down.
Bit of a reshuffle going on elsewhere as well:
BBC News announces four senior appointments
BBC News has today announced four senior appointments which will strengthen the BBC’s news coverage, both internationally and at home.
Jon Sopel has been appointed as North America Editor. He replaces Mark Mardell, who will become the presenter of Radio 4’s The World This Weekend and also present The World At One on Fridays. Katya Adler has been appointed as Europe Editor, taking over from Gavin Hewitt. Ian Pannell becomes International Correspondent, in recognition of his award-winning coverage of global affairs.
Interesting they have actually replaced Mardell with a real person…a tub of lard, ala Roy Hattersley, would have done a similar job to Mardell….for a lot less money.
No sign of the Glee Club at Today being given a bit of a makeover though….Bowen might also be usefully redeployed elsewhere….and then there’s Roger Harrabin.
Work in progress?
He only did one day a week, his sneering, bored, uninterested, world weary look, was amusing at first, but after about 30 seconds it was tiresome.
I shall miss Paxo.
I expect we all will when we see the replacement.
We could run a book on how his replacement is related to the Labour party.
‘Bowen might also be usefully redeployed elsewhere’…such as cleaning the toilets or wiping the vomit from the DG’s carpet.
I’m with David Brims on this one.
Paxman now affecting boredom.
A forensic interviewer can be polite, but Paxman preferred to be rude. And with Paxman it was never about the interview, it was always about Paxman The Brand.
Not missed here.
When ever Mr Paxman interviewed, sorry, bullied, his guests into answering questions and the answers didn’t fit in with the BBC group think, it always looked from his facial expressions that Mr Paxman’s St Giles were giving him grief. Maybe that is why he has left/moved on, it was getting too painful to sit in the chair especially when he was interviewing UKIP members.
There is a rumour going around that Roger Harrabin will be fronting the new edition of *The Unbelievable Truth* on Radio 4
Paxman was never more than a music hall act. A complete irrelevance as a journalist – a pantomime dame pretending to be a diva.
Roger Harrabin is left in place because of the ten following possibilities:
(1) He is regarded as the BBC’s best scientific expert.
(2) He is being keep in place by Lord Hall for reasons of future self defence.
(3) He is being used as a useful idiot by MI5.
(4) He is a believer.
(5) He is not a sceptic of the ideology.
(6) He supports BBC Censorship of science, scientists and scientific debate.
(7) He is a Green.
(8) He supports the banning and gagging of the wrong sort of chaps.
(9) He supports the left-wing establishment.
(10) He doesn’t know much about the basics of Atmospheric Physics.
i think paxman got so sick and tired of the left wing bias within the bbc that he just had enough and threw his cards in, i hope that paxman wont have a gagging order put on him not to expose the real goings ons down at the bbc, i fear he has,anyway i for one will miss paxman,i dread what follows him on newsnight.aghhhhhhhhhhh !! victoria derbyshire could be sitting in the hot seat.
http://www.oddschecker.com/tv/tv-specials/newsnight/next-presenter-after-paxman…me money is gobby laura kuenssberg
Over the 25 years he certainly climbed the bBBC’s greasy pole but in the end has he suffered the inevtable fate of displaying too much of his own arse.
He was probably getting very close to punching Katz in the face, which is perfectly understandable.
I have a confession to make . About 15 years ago I was driving through Ladbrook Grove area when someone stepped out into the road . I braked & avoided him , & then realised it was Paxo .
So I apologise to everyone , but must claim it was an instinctive reaction & I was not thinking at the time .
You really make it seem so easy with your presentation but
I find this topic to be really something that I think I would never understand.
It seems too complex and extremely broad for me.
I’m looking forward for your next post, I will try to get the hang of
it!