bleated BBC Views Online a couple of days ago: A demonstration has been held in south-east Afghanistan accusing US troops of insulting Islam after they distributed footballs bearing the name of Allah. The balls showed the Saudi Arabian flag which features the Koranic declaration of faith. The US military said the idea had been to give something for Afghan children to enjoy and they did not realise it would cause … Continue reading →

reports the Daily Telegraph: Miss Ford echoed Jeremy Paxman’s withering attack on the fall in standards on British television, saying it was vital that the BBC differentiates itself from other channels by making “extremely high-class programmes”. “I do think that complaints about dumbing down are justified,” she said. “I must sound very old-fashioned when I use the word vulgarity, but we are constantly seeing people on screen who are of … Continue reading →

(2.30pm) for his persistence in an interview with Steve Gough, National Vice Chair of the Prison Officers Association trade union. At lunchtime the government sought (oh the irony!) and was granted an injunction agsint the POA, compelling the the union to call off today’s lightning strike or be in contempt of court. A little after 2pm, live on TV, a POA official in Liverpool, Steve Baines, told his members that … Continue reading →

“We’ve received a number of calls and messages …” … complaining about the liberal, Guardian nature of this debate”. Radio Four’s You and Yours discusses inequalities of wealth – with Polly Toynbee, Camila Batmanghelidjh and I think some chap from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. The consensus ? More government spending. Click through to read and contribute comments on this post.

on a day long series of programmes under the working title of Planet Relief, a ghastly sounding load of right-on eco-fascist claptrap propaganda, presented by well known and respected scientific investigators Ricky Gervais and Jonathan ‘a bargain at £18 million’ Woss (“is ‘e ‘avin a laff?”, as Gervais might ask). The Guardian’s piece sums it up best: Two of the BBC’s most senior news and current affairs executives attacked the … Continue reading →

Please use this thread for BBC-related comments and analysis. Please keep comments on other threads to the topic at hand. N.B. this is not (and never has been) an invitation for general off-topic comments, rants or use as a chat forum. This post will remain at or near the top of the blog. Please scroll down to find new topic-specific posts. Click through to read and contribute comments on this … Continue reading →

may, as Damien Thompson pointed out, tread warily when it comes to investigating radical Islamists, leaving that sort of thing to Channel Four. But you can’t fault them when it comes to keeping tabs on the SS Historical Re-enactment Menace. Nothing like a finely honed sense of priorities. It surely can’t be long before the Second Battle Group turn up in an episode of Casualty. Click through to read and … Continue reading →

at the Edinburgh International Televison Festival is available in full here on the Newsnight website. Here’s a great line to be going on with: I have to say that it seems to me things haven’t been much helped by they way they’ve been handled. We’ve had the preposterous spectacle of some of the most senior figures in broadcasting running around like maiden aunts who’ve walked in on some teenage party, … Continue reading →

an article defending the BBC in today’s Guardian. A commentator in the Guardian’s comments section sums it up well: Partnership… standards… interaction… percentages… engage… conversation… culture… value… colleagues… Now, back to the studio. Most of the comments, from Guardian readers remember, have been hostile. For example: What a load of guff. It’s not your stupid phone-ins and naff prizes which are the problem – it’s your political bias and the … Continue reading →

– you know, the one that the BBC did so much to promote in advance with daily mentions on BBC Views Online, complete with directions to the site (though stopping short of “and it’s handy for those coming by air too – just look for the BBC helicopter above the camp!” – though that wouldn’t have been out of character), I was surprised that we didn’t see this prominent banner … Continue reading →