‘
Stop the presses!’ The BBC would love to do that wouldn’t they? Perhaps they should hold their own Frontpage instead of stuffing it full of self-promotional guff from TV-land luvvies.
Anyway…frontpage news on the BBC…is the BBC…..
Armando Iannucci: Britain needs strong TV industry
Comedy writer Armando Iannucci has called for an industry-wide defence of the BBC and British programme-makers.
However it does seem that Iannucci considers himself one of the BBC’s people…
Iannucci suggested one way of easing the strain on the licence fee was “by pushing ourselves more commercially abroad”.
“Be more aggressive in selling our shows, through advertising, through proper international subscription channels, freeing up BBC Worldwide to be fully commercial, whatever it takes.
Iannucci also spins an old falsehood that the charter review process will not have any ‘creatives’ in it…
In July, the government issued a green paper setting out issues that will be explored during negotiations over the future of the BBC, including the broadcaster’s size, its funding and governance.
UK Culture Secretary John Whittingdale appointed a panel of eight people to advise on the charter renewal, including former Channel 5 boss Dawn Airey and journalism professor Stewart Purvis, a former editor-in-chief of ITN.
Iannucci bemoaned the lack of “creatives” involved in the discussions.
That’s simply not true…the panel itself includes many ffom the TV industry and the BBC and the BBC Trust will have major roles to play in the review. Not only that but many experts and interested parties will be called upon to give evidence and their opinion on the review. So hardly the bean counters in charge, not the hit squad of ‘gravediggers’ for the BBC that we are led to believe.…
Firstly is the Panel the sole source of information and reference for the government? No. The BBC itself, through Hall and his executives and via the BBC Trust, will be having a huge say in what goes on and the Trust will be gathering information and data to support whatever case it decides to proffer….
One of the creations of the last Charter was the BBC Trust – set up to represent the licence fee payer. The Trust will, in thisrole, also be consulting on proposals for the future of the BBC. We will take full account of the Trust’s work and work with them on a range of public and industry events to explore in detail the important issues in the coming months.
The Public and whoever else is interested and concerned are also invited to contribute their views and opinions…
Reviewing the BBC’s Royal Charter is not just a case of publishing a consultation. We want to engage with the public and with industry to make sure that all views are given proper consideration. This is why we are engaging with people across the UK in a number of ways to make it easy for everyone to respond.
Not only that but other experts will be engaged to provide comment and relevant expertise…
There are also some areas where studies, reviews and research are needed – to add technical expertise or independence from Government. We will be commissioning these in the coming months.
Not only that but as well as the eight people on the review Panel other people or groups will be asked to join the panel as when the situation requires it.
Hardly the cosy little stitch up by a government in hock to the Murdoch empire as excitedly claimed by Fowler, Patten and Lee & Co as they paint a doomsday scenario for the BBC.
Sky has a slightly different take on what Iannucci said about ‘creatives’…no link to the BBC and charter review…
“If Britain is at the top of its game in TV creativity, I think it is because we have the best audience in the world.
“It takes the difficult, and the idiosyncratic, and makes it popular. That’s why we in television should feel lucky to be born in this country.”
He added that the future success of British television will depend on broadcasters’ willingness to trust the “creatives” who know how to make good programs.
The BBC’s Director General is also involved, as usual, in scaremongering, stating…
…that further cuts to the corporation’s funding and remit could result in more than 30,000 job losses across the TV industry.
“New research shows that, because of the boost the BBC provides, if you cut the licence fee by 25% you’d lose about 32,000 jobs across the whole economy,” said Hall. “These aren’t just jobs at the BBC, but across the TV industry – at independent producers, suppliers and studios up and down the country.”
“A strong BBC also contributes to a strong UK economy. A strong BBC will help deliver a strong Britain”.
This [H/T Craig at Is the BBC biased?…no, apparently not] is also highly relevant…and somewhat not unexpected from the cowardly Tories:
The BBC’s ‘nemesis’ John Whittingdale has been speaking at the Guardian Edinburgh International Television Festival.
Here are some of the things he said, as quoted by the Independent and the Guardian:
This idea that there is an ideological drive to destroy the BBC is just extraordinary, the people rushing to defend the BBC are tilting at windmills, they are trying to have an argument that has never been started, certainly not by me.
Britain’s image abroad is enormously strengthened by the success of the BBC.
Do I think there is general bias towards the left? No.
For the moment, the licence fee or something like it is the best option.
“Do I think there is general bias towards the left? No.”
“For the moment, the licence fee or something like it is the best option.”
Rowlocks ( Cockney rhyming slang )!!!!
From the moment he clearly steered ‘The Future of the BBC’ Committee’ away from actual service standards to funding options and cosy governance issues, all which formed the basis of the eventual report, I have viewed the screams that he is a hardline BBC-tamer as just so much concocted fluff between the wet Tories and the BBC’s most reliable flounce partners.
Look who and what we are up against:
http://order-order.com/2015/08/27/david-camerons-promise-to-the-british-people/
Everything is based on spin, and if it unravels, lies.
And to get away with it, the PM needs the BBC as an enemy of his enemies to push shared values down the throats of the public.
I swallowed the Tories last election for economic reasons. But I trust them as much as I trust the BBC now.
And the BBC are now the ‘opposition;, only without any silly need to attract votes to survive.
http://order-order.com/2015/08/27/chicken-tories-dodge-migration-accountability/
So we now have the two most powerful forces of the politico-media state in lockstep and with zero need to worry about actual accountability, so long as each scratches the other’s back.
Of course, like Adolf with Uncle Joe, the watching inevitably will end up a stabbing, and then they squeal to those they screwed to gain short term advantage.
It seems incredible none of these folk ever actually read a history book when they ‘read’ History at Oxford.
As they say, the bloated BBC is a badly run organisation, and according to Lord Grade, the BBC needs someone from the real world of commerce who understands the “value of money”. It would be advisable for the BBC to be forced into replacing the revolving door of low IQ insiders such as Tony Hall, with more competent people who understand the value of money such as Noel Edmonds or Richard Desmond. Who just happen to have their own plans on how they would run the BBC.
John Whittingdale is a self confessed Libertarian and a member of the Freedom Association. He says that his statement that the licence fee is worse than the “Poll Tax” was a statement of fact. So I presume that the statement that he does not think that there is a “general bias towards the left” at the BBC, is because he thinks that a “general” bias is defined by a fact that the left-wing bias at the BBC is “not participated by all within the BBC”. Well, he is a Mensa member talking to a bunch of lefties at war with the Tory Party.
Even Mishal Hussain thought him an over-glutinous suckup on Today this morning(7.55 or so).
When a BBC hack implies you`re a crawler, then your irony buttons have long gone cold.
Pity really-he used to be funny, and a talent.
The embrace of the BBC …a case study in liberal Oxbridge slavering at Aunties slippers.