Friday, September 30, 2011
Everything stops for tea
Did a surreptitious cuppa scupper Ed ? The extra demands of boiling water on locally-generated power are thought to have taken the Labour leader off our tv screens for five minutes during his party conference speech in Liverpool this week - and the inquest and finger-pointing seems to be continuing....
BBC version "It was a technical fault caused by a generator failure in a contractor's truck which was supplying a pooled feed to broadcasters."
Sky News version "Unfortunately during Ed Miliband's speech a junction box powering some of the broadcast trucks tripped and as a result we lost the feed to our live link".
Carole Erskine, Sky News blog post "I can reveal that an engineer - for a different channel - simply tried to boil the kettle to make himself a cup of tea but this small action tripped a power supply and knocked out several trucks"
Jon Craig, Sky News conference diary "....the ITV News technician who boiled a kettle in a satellite truck during Mr Miliband's speech, blew a fuse and robbed television viewers of the speech for about five minutes".
Below, a picture of the alleged crime scene which has fallen into my hands. I have blanked some brand names, but as you can see, the water-boiling machine is closer to an urn than a kettle. I note, too, the nice little cafetiere, and the semi-skimmed milk. A first glance a rather rugged area, but clearly used by some sensitive souls, not perhaps, as interested in Mr Miliband's words as others.
BBC version "It was a technical fault caused by a generator failure in a contractor's truck which was supplying a pooled feed to broadcasters."
Sky News version "Unfortunately during Ed Miliband's speech a junction box powering some of the broadcast trucks tripped and as a result we lost the feed to our live link".
Carole Erskine, Sky News blog post "I can reveal that an engineer - for a different channel - simply tried to boil the kettle to make himself a cup of tea but this small action tripped a power supply and knocked out several trucks"
Jon Craig, Sky News conference diary "....the ITV News technician who boiled a kettle in a satellite truck during Mr Miliband's speech, blew a fuse and robbed television viewers of the speech for about five minutes".
Below, a picture of the alleged crime scene which has fallen into my hands. I have blanked some brand names, but as you can see, the water-boiling machine is closer to an urn than a kettle. I note, too, the nice little cafetiere, and the semi-skimmed milk. A first glance a rather rugged area, but clearly used by some sensitive souls, not perhaps, as interested in Mr Miliband's words as others.
Frying pan to fire
The Guardian says staff on BBC Radio 4's You and Yours have been told they're earmarked for a move to Salford. If true, this is unfortunate for some on the production team who jumped ship from Five Live ahead of their move north. A year or so ago, the passing liner Radio 4 looked pretty invulnerable at the time; now, every division is having to offer more bodies to fill space at MediaCityUK, and you can expect more stories like this.
The Y&Y presenter line-up might not change. No problem for Winifred Robinson, based in Liverpool. Peter White, though blind, is an indefatigable traveller. And Julian Worricker, with a portfolio of jobs around London, is not averse to the occasional Pendolino.
The Y&Y presenter line-up might not change. No problem for Winifred Robinson, based in Liverpool. Peter White, though blind, is an indefatigable traveller. And Julian Worricker, with a portfolio of jobs around London, is not averse to the occasional Pendolino.
Thursday, September 29, 2011
TV on trial
To roll or not ? It's the dilemma facing all 24-hour news channels - and Sky News has opted for the full deal on the trial of Dr Conrad Murray, charged with involuntary manslaughter after the death of his patient, Michael Jackson, in June 2009. Meanwhile the more hesitant BBC News Channel (nee News 24) pops in and out.
Has it got audience appeal in the UK ? After a hesitant start, it seems so - Sky News share was up around 45% in prime time on Wednesday, and the News Channel is off the top. The Sky gamble needs to pay off - Jeff Randall has retired to the golf course for the week, to make way for the trial coverage - and you have to say that European financial meltdown, if it comes, may prove of longer term significance.
Has it got audience appeal in the UK ? After a hesitant start, it seems so - Sky News share was up around 45% in prime time on Wednesday, and the News Channel is off the top. The Sky gamble needs to pay off - Jeff Randall has retired to the golf course for the week, to make way for the trial coverage - and you have to say that European financial meltdown, if it comes, may prove of longer term significance.
- In the States, there's no doubt about the interest on some networks. Fox launched an iPhone app on Monday for trial coverage - at 99c. It's now topping the charts for paid news apps at the Apple store.
Gannin hyem
Whilst the world laughs at Jeremy Hunt's vainglorious charge at the windmill of local tv, Sky are tilting a lance at the equally evasive target of "regional news, sport and more delivered via the web and mobile". A pilot will soon be underway centred on Newcastle.
For those puzzled as to why the Knights of Osterley have lighted upon the north-east, I give you the CV of CEO Jeremy Darroch. Born in Alnwick, Head Boy of the (former) Duke's Grammar School; University of Hull; Deloitte; Procter and Gamble (starting in Newcastle); Dixons and BSkyB. Grandfather was a miner, father a tax manager. Jeremy still supports Newcastle United, and is a regular at St James' Park.
For those puzzled as to why the Knights of Osterley have lighted upon the north-east, I give you the CV of CEO Jeremy Darroch. Born in Alnwick, Head Boy of the (former) Duke's Grammar School; University of Hull; Deloitte; Procter and Gamble (starting in Newcastle); Dixons and BSkyB. Grandfather was a miner, father a tax manager. Jeremy still supports Newcastle United, and is a regular at St James' Park.
Clothes horse
Vanessa Feltz may have lost her chat show on Channel 5 (sets by Debenhams) but the hardest working woman in show business is never off duty. Unsubtle product placement continued this week with Randyz Bags and Iced Rainbow jewellery.
- Vanessa is off today - it's the Jewish New Year; Lynn Parsons covered her Radio 2 early morning show, and Nikki Bedi sits in at Radio London. But be warned if you see her about - on Wednesday morning, she informed Radio 2 listeners "It's so lovely I am thinking about exhuming the g-string".
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Walking
A little update on Neville Thurlbeck, former Chief Reporter of the News of The World. The Guardian says he became "former" early this month - up until then, he was suspended but still being paid. He's apparently heading to the East London Employment Tribunal on Friday, to bring a case for unfair dismissal against News International, on the grounds that he was a "whistleblower". If this all stands up, it'll be interesting to find out in whose ear the whistle was being blown, and when.
As far back as 2000, Neville was acting an an unpaid police informer, with the code name George. Hertfordshire Police thought money was changing hands, and brought a court case against Thurlbeck and a Detective Constable from the National Criminal Intelligence Service. It was dismissed, and Neville later told the Press Gazette "The police were very impressed about the type of intelligence I was coming up with and that was revealed in court. The judge said it was a substantial volume of information that was extremely useful to police."
Meanwhile Neville has been spending some time raising nearly £1600 for Help for Heroes, with a sponsored walk around East Anglia. His supporters are not without a sense of humour. "Thank God we're not sponsoring you for a pub crawl !" and "There must be easier ways of impressing the CPS ! Good luck Nev. Top effort" are among the comments. Sponsors from the old days include Tom Crone and Maz Mahmood.
As far back as 2000, Neville was acting an an unpaid police informer, with the code name George. Hertfordshire Police thought money was changing hands, and brought a court case against Thurlbeck and a Detective Constable from the National Criminal Intelligence Service. It was dismissed, and Neville later told the Press Gazette "The police were very impressed about the type of intelligence I was coming up with and that was revealed in court. The judge said it was a substantial volume of information that was extremely useful to police."
Meanwhile Neville has been spending some time raising nearly £1600 for Help for Heroes, with a sponsored walk around East Anglia. His supporters are not without a sense of humour. "Thank God we're not sponsoring you for a pub crawl !" and "There must be easier ways of impressing the CPS ! Good luck Nev. Top effort" are among the comments. Sponsors from the old days include Tom Crone and Maz Mahmood.
Glimpses of the future
Suits and middle managers are waiting for revelations of a new management structure in BBC News. After the departure of DDG Mark Byford, and the closure of his "Journalism Board", there have been a number of loose ends to tie up - and a one-year period of review as Director of News Helen Boaden contemplates the best way to manage News, English Regions, news in the "Nations", World Service and Monitoring.
One small element seems to have been sorted. Richard Addy, former Chief Adviser to the DDG, has re-emerged as Special Adviser to the Director of News (Audience Strategy). Helen has four other advisors on her books, at salaries between £85k and £105k. And she has the services of Richard Dawkins, as a Controller of Strategy shared with Audio & Music.
Will the full new structure ease out into daylight this week - or is the unveiling to come to managers and staff shoulder to shoulder at staff DQF briefings next week ?
One small element seems to have been sorted. Richard Addy, former Chief Adviser to the DDG, has re-emerged as Special Adviser to the Director of News (Audience Strategy). Helen has four other advisors on her books, at salaries between £85k and £105k. And she has the services of Richard Dawkins, as a Controller of Strategy shared with Audio & Music.
Will the full new structure ease out into daylight this week - or is the unveiling to come to managers and staff shoulder to shoulder at staff DQF briefings next week ?
What belongs to Glasgow ?
Lord Patten is taking a stroll round the wide-open spaces of the BBC's Pacific Quay headquarters in Glasgow today. Interrogated by Gary Robertson on Good Morning Scotland, he described some local newspaper headlines about cuts to come north of the border as "far-fetched".
The Scottish Sun has recruited Lorraine Kelly to lead a campaign to preserve Glasgow soap River City as a year round offering; there are rumours that it'll be forced to take a summer break. It currently costs around £7m p.a to produce, for an average audience of 500,000 - £14 per viewer per year.
For the whole of the BBC, the grim news from Lord Patten was that the whole DQF palaver will go to public consultation, and final decisions will only come in the New Year.
The Scottish Sun has recruited Lorraine Kelly to lead a campaign to preserve Glasgow soap River City as a year round offering; there are rumours that it'll be forced to take a summer break. It currently costs around £7m p.a to produce, for an average audience of 500,000 - £14 per viewer per year.
For the whole of the BBC, the grim news from Lord Patten was that the whole DQF palaver will go to public consultation, and final decisions will only come in the New Year.
Lifting the roof
If you notice a little too much glistening in upcoming episodes of Casualty, there's a simple explanation - and it won't last long.
In the move from Bristol to the new BBC Drama Village at Roath Lock, Cardiff, the sets had to be rebuilt and refreshed. The Casualty team re-erected them the way they're used to - with full ceilings. However putting a "lid" on a set in a traditional studio defeats the expensive air conditioning - and temperatures on the new sets have been hitting 27C/80F. Now the boxes have been opened up, and we can all breathe more easily. There'll just be fewer shots with ceilings in...
In the move from Bristol to the new BBC Drama Village at Roath Lock, Cardiff, the sets had to be rebuilt and refreshed. The Casualty team re-erected them the way they're used to - with full ceilings. However putting a "lid" on a set in a traditional studio defeats the expensive air conditioning - and temperatures on the new sets have been hitting 27C/80F. Now the boxes have been opened up, and we can all breathe more easily. There'll just be fewer shots with ceilings in...
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Licensed to write
I've rather enjoyed the derision pointed at Shadow DCMS Secretary Ivan Lewis, for suggesting that journalists should be licensed so that they can be "struck off" for bad behaviour.
Roy Greenslade at The Guardian leads the charge. But where can our Ivan have got the idea from ? Surely not the Guardian's Amelia Hill, fresh from sharing a stage with BBC DG Mark Thompson, at the International Press Institute conference in Taiwan ?
Try this from around 1.10 in, to 2.00.
Roy Greenslade at The Guardian leads the charge. But where can our Ivan have got the idea from ? Surely not the Guardian's Amelia Hill, fresh from sharing a stage with BBC DG Mark Thompson, at the International Press Institute conference in Taiwan ?
Try this from around 1.10 in, to 2.00.
A recorded walk
An eagled-eye source, with a radio heritage, has picked up a video solecism in last night's Newsnight. At the end of last night's programme menu, Jezzer (Mr Paxman to you and me) turns on his heels towards the desk, and, more quickly than is humanly possible, is seated. If this sort of thing interests you, click here, and watch from 1.40 to 1.45, and explain to me how Jezzer gets into the chair.
From the air
More helicopter news - from "This Is Gloucester". The Peel Group, who brought you MediaCityUK, are seeking permission to revamp their site in Gloucester, creating 55,000 square foot of retail, a new high-level cinema, and 11 restaurants at The Quays, for around £60m investment.
This is Gloucester says this will "catapult Gloucester forward as a shopping and food destination". But how does Peel make decisions of this magnitude ?
The investment was decided upon after the company's chairman John Whittaker, a billionaire, flew over the city in a helicopter from the Isle of Man. He said: "I believe the proposed cinema and associated restaurants will greatly enhance the choice for Gloucester residents and visitors."
This is Gloucester says this will "catapult Gloucester forward as a shopping and food destination". But how does Peel make decisions of this magnitude ?
The investment was decided upon after the company's chairman John Whittaker, a billionaire, flew over the city in a helicopter from the Isle of Man. He said: "I believe the proposed cinema and associated restaurants will greatly enhance the choice for Gloucester residents and visitors."
Cloned
One of these men is Gregor Fisher, in costume for the role of Rab C. Nesbitt. Of course, you can't tell which until they start talking....
Brass in pocket
As the Mike Lowe, Editor of Cotswold Life tweeted during last night's 10pm bulletin on BBC1 "Somebody tell Robert Peston to get his bloody hands out of his pockets. This is the BBC, not the Shopping Channel".
What can have brought on this extraordinary display of lower-sixth loucheness ? A low position in the Match of the Day running order, in the Mishal Husain Championship part of the programme, with big Huw leading the Premier League from Liverpool ? Fear of graphics ? Desk withdrawal symptoms ? Or did he think it was a rehearsal ?
What can have brought on this extraordinary display of lower-sixth loucheness ? A low position in the Match of the Day running order, in the Mishal Husain Championship part of the programme, with big Huw leading the Premier League from Liverpool ? Fear of graphics ? Desk withdrawal symptoms ? Or did he think it was a rehearsal ?
Monday, September 26, 2011
So it starts
Five Live is underway from MediaCityUK. Tony Livesey's show has made only a short move from Oxford Road, but all seems to be going ok at time of writing. His first topic of conversation - a discussion of the power of tv, prompted by Sir Alex Ferguson telling Gordon Burn of BBC North West Tonight that the medium is "god".
As you can see from the webcam shot, the guest seats are empty. Professor Ellis Cashmore was "down the line". Will that matter in the long term ?
The only hiccups so far - Money reporter Jenny Culshaw has underestimated the height of the new radio car, and taken an element of equipment off the top; and the webcam on the sports presenter has failed. Still, it remains a little more glamourous than the last Livesey show from Oxford Road.
23.20 update: sports presenter webcam fixed; debate on homelessness with Grant Shapps, Shelter spokesperson and homeless person down the line.
As you can see from the webcam shot, the guest seats are empty. Professor Ellis Cashmore was "down the line". Will that matter in the long term ?
The only hiccups so far - Money reporter Jenny Culshaw has underestimated the height of the new radio car, and taken an element of equipment off the top; and the webcam on the sports presenter has failed. Still, it remains a little more glamourous than the last Livesey show from Oxford Road.
23.20 update: sports presenter webcam fixed; debate on homelessness with Grant Shapps, Shelter spokesperson and homeless person down the line.
Wrong arm of the law
As one wing of the British judicial system tries to engage with the idea of live tv coverage, a judge sitting in Luton has jailed a 19-year-old for two months for using his camera-phone in the court's public gallery. And this is a judge, Barbara Mensah, whose appointment two years ago was highlighted as a move to create a more diverse, forward-looking judiciary.
The lad might have had a bit of an attitude problem - on hearing his sentence he said "That's stupid, man" - but many people would, in this case, agree with him. An afternoon in the court cells would have been enough.
The lad might have had a bit of an attitude problem - on hearing his sentence he said "That's stupid, man" - but many people would, in this case, agree with him. An afternoon in the court cells would have been enough.
Wrong hubby
Goldie Cheung seems to have left the XFactor - and the Mail hints that marital influence was involved.
"A source said her decision to leave was triggered by discussions with her husband, David Webb, 52, who used to work for Chris Patten, the former British Governor of Hong Kong. Mr Patten is now chairman of the BBC. Following a series of conversations with her husband, Hong Kong-born Ms Cheung concluded she was being used by the programme as a figure of fun – like last year's tone-deaf act Wagner Carrilho – rather than a serious contender."
This information seems to have got mangled in arriving in the mouth of ITV This Morning presenter who indicated that Goldie was married to the BBC Chairman. More details if and when it reaches the ITV iPlayer......
Here's Goldie from 2008 - in a show with a familiar format in Hong Kong
"A source said her decision to leave was triggered by discussions with her husband, David Webb, 52, who used to work for Chris Patten, the former British Governor of Hong Kong. Mr Patten is now chairman of the BBC. Following a series of conversations with her husband, Hong Kong-born Ms Cheung concluded she was being used by the programme as a figure of fun – like last year's tone-deaf act Wagner Carrilho – rather than a serious contender."
This information seems to have got mangled in arriving in the mouth of ITV This Morning presenter who indicated that Goldie was married to the BBC Chairman. More details if and when it reaches the ITV iPlayer......
Here's Goldie from 2008 - in a show with a familiar format in Hong Kong
Choppers and chatters
Some firsts at MediaCityUK today - Blue Peter, live from their new "wired hub", at 4.30pm, new titles, new logo, new music, one fewer regular presenters (to balance the books ?) and one obligatory Royal Navy Sea King helicopter.
Tonight, at 10.30, when most of the watching suits have headed south on the Pendolino, Tony Livesey ("lively late night chat on stories you're tallking about") hits the airwaves for the first time live from Salford Quays, rather than New Broadcasting House, Oxford Road.
All moves seem to be going to timetable - apart from some of the factual teams at Oxford Road. Pick of The Week, Brain of Britain and File on Four seem to have had their studio changes put back, as the techies swarm round this week's movers.
Tonight, at 10.30, when most of the watching suits have headed south on the Pendolino, Tony Livesey ("lively late night chat on stories you're tallking about") hits the airwaves for the first time live from Salford Quays, rather than New Broadcasting House, Oxford Road.
All moves seem to be going to timetable - apart from some of the factual teams at Oxford Road. Pick of The Week, Brain of Britain and File on Four seem to have had their studio changes put back, as the techies swarm round this week's movers.
Fair do's
Oops. The BBC, national home of HR and bastion of best practice on fair dealing, equality, diversity, etc, has unveiled an uncomfortable figure in response to a Freedom of Information request.
In terms of mean average salary, men are currently better off than women by £4,989 a year.
The average for men is £41,816; the average for women is £36,827. The damage seems to be done in the salaries above £100,000, and again, over £200,0000. Here's the chart for those; figures as at 31 May 2011.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Short list
Stonewall's nominees for Journalist of the Year 2011....
• Matthew Cain (C4 News)
• Vanessa Feltz (Radio 2, Daily Express, BBC London)
• Grizelda (Private Eye, The Spectator)
• Matthew Todd (Attitude)
• Phil Reay-Smith (Daybreak, ITV1)
No, I can't call it either...
• Matthew Cain (C4 News)
• Vanessa Feltz (Radio 2, Daily Express, BBC London)
• Grizelda (Private Eye, The Spectator)
• Matthew Todd (Attitude)
• Phil Reay-Smith (Daybreak, ITV1)
No, I can't call it either...
Skean do
Scotland on Sunday says that up to 150 jobs will go at BBC Scotland under the cuts to be announced early in October. It reckons that Radio Scotland will stop overnight programming of its own, and the soap River City, which costs £7m a year and reaches 500,000, will be cut back from 52 weeks a year to 40.
I enjoyed this line from the Scotsman story... A senior source close to the BBC said last night: "BBC Scotland is going to be quite well protected under PQF."
A misprint for Delivering Quality First ? No, I suspect it stands for Pacific Quay First.....
I enjoyed this line from the Scotsman story... A senior source close to the BBC said last night: "BBC Scotland is going to be quite well protected under PQF."
A misprint for Delivering Quality First ? No, I suspect it stands for Pacific Quay First.....
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Sharing - and caring ?
BBC News may be on the verge of sharing information - internally. A new website has been developed over the past year which allows journalists to share tips, leads, pictures, video and audio - rather pompously called The Journalism Portal.
Here's a link to a 22-page White Paper, proclaiming the system's benefits for all - speed, simplicity, maximising the organisation's strength across countries and genres - and, sensibly (in these days of Delivering Quality First), reducing duplication.
However its proponents make it clear - it only works if everybody plays, and there's no mention, at the moment, of Today producers and Newsnight editors sharing their intentions with the wider BBC in advance.
Here's a link to a 22-page White Paper, proclaiming the system's benefits for all - speed, simplicity, maximising the organisation's strength across countries and genres - and, sensibly (in these days of Delivering Quality First), reducing duplication.
However its proponents make it clear - it only works if everybody plays, and there's no mention, at the moment, of Today producers and Newsnight editors sharing their intentions with the wider BBC in advance.
The London Boroughs of Westfield
Lest Westfield White City is feeling out of it after all the attention given to Westfield at Stratford, the Bush now strikes back. An outline planning application (still strangely without drawings) was lodged at the end of August to beef up the White City site. Property Week says it amounts to a £1bn extension.
They want three new blocks ranging from eight to 20 storeys high, connected to the existing centre by a high level podium; an 8-12 storey free-standing block to the south of Wood Lane Station; a building up to 8 storeys high to the east of the DIMCO Building (grade II listed, now serving as a bus depot); and a 4-5 storey addition to western wall of the existing shopping centre along Wood Lane.
In all that, there'll be shops, restaurants, offices, and some 1,600 residential units. What chance does that give Auntie of selling Television Centre for the next ten years or so ?
Friday, September 23, 2011
Done and dusted
Mark Thompson, asked by acolytes how the final version of Delivering Quality First went down with the BBC Trust.... "They loved it".
Hired help
An FOI request by the Guardian has produced the annual list of the BBC's spend on consultants. The full roster is here - I've picked out a few of the less well-known.
Avenue Associates: £1,250
A "full-service research marketing and strategic advising firm" with offices in San Francisco; "Avenue Principals spoke about Transit-oriented Development, Green Trends and Socially Responsible Investing at national conferences this year".
Digital Public: £3,000
Part of Transform ("We are change architects") of Great Portland St
The Janus Partnership: £900
Workplace mediation, dispute resolution and grievance investigation.
The Virtuous Circle: £8,388
specialising in reputation and risk, and operating in the fields of CSR, Carbon Footprinting, Non Financials, Risk Management and Communications.
Just Add Water: £1,380
Bathroom design solutions
Blazie: £845
Supplies computer access and note-taking solutions for blind and visually-impaired people.
Digital Vision: £150,000
I may have got the wrong company here - aerial repair in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear ?
iBuildings: £5,250
"Enterprise web development by the PHP experts"
Mediasmiths: £10,000
"providing independent and objective advice on problem solving and system selection, and an agile approach to system implementation"
SU53: £52,845
"provides governance, risk management, compliance and security services to companies that run SAP"
3 Reasons: £16,500
"Three Reasons is a dynamic company that specialises in the design, marketing and management of events and projects"
Analysys Mason: £25,000
"a trusted adviser on telecoms, technology and media"
Bain & Co: £245,000
"the consulting firm the world's business leaders come to when they want enduring results, and a partner who cares as much as they do about getting them"
Unwork.com Ltd: £12,000
The Future of Work (no comment - Ed)
Avenue Associates: £1,250
A "full-service research marketing and strategic advising firm" with offices in San Francisco; "Avenue Principals spoke about Transit-oriented Development, Green Trends and Socially Responsible Investing at national conferences this year".
Digital Public: £3,000
Part of Transform ("We are change architects") of Great Portland St
The Janus Partnership: £900
Workplace mediation, dispute resolution and grievance investigation.
The Virtuous Circle: £8,388
specialising in reputation and risk, and operating in the fields of CSR, Carbon Footprinting, Non Financials, Risk Management and Communications.
Just Add Water: £1,380
Bathroom design solutions
Blazie: £845
Supplies computer access and note-taking solutions for blind and visually-impaired people.
Digital Vision: £150,000
I may have got the wrong company here - aerial repair in Hetton-le-Hole, Tyne and Wear ?
iBuildings: £5,250
"Enterprise web development by the PHP experts"
Mediasmiths: £10,000
"providing independent and objective advice on problem solving and system selection, and an agile approach to system implementation"
SU53: £52,845
"provides governance, risk management, compliance and security services to companies that run SAP"
3 Reasons: £16,500
"Three Reasons is a dynamic company that specialises in the design, marketing and management of events and projects"
Analysys Mason: £25,000
"a trusted adviser on telecoms, technology and media"
Bain & Co: £245,000
"the consulting firm the world's business leaders come to when they want enduring results, and a partner who cares as much as they do about getting them"
Unwork.com Ltd: £12,000
The Future of Work (no comment - Ed)
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Big day
It's a significant day for the BBC, with the Executive formally presenting their proposed list of cuts to the Trust. Lord Patten was seen calmly perusing the FT on his way in, on the 283 from Barnes - but that's his style.
Audiences are at the heart of everything the BBC does, but today, spare a thought for a confused and beleaguered staff. Up to 3,000 of around 20,000 will go as a result of this process, and because, after all the pious hopes, it HAS ended up as salami-slicing, there's anxiety and stress in every division. The next steps must be to limit and narrow that anxiety as quickly as possible.
Audiences are at the heart of everything the BBC does, but today, spare a thought for a confused and beleaguered staff. Up to 3,000 of around 20,000 will go as a result of this process, and because, after all the pious hopes, it HAS ended up as salami-slicing, there's anxiety and stress in every division. The next steps must be to limit and narrow that anxiety as quickly as possible.
Ice Trucker man comes home
The Cardiff-based Taffia have been thwarted in the race to be new chief executive of S4C, according to Wales Online.
They say Ian Jones, currently working in New York for tv distribution firm A&E Television Networks, has got the job and is negotiating his exit and arrival. AETN sells shows like Ice Road Truckers, Gene Simmons Family Jewels and Steven Seagal: Lawman as well many reality, crime and history series.
Ian tells the AETN story here.
They say Ian Jones, currently working in New York for tv distribution firm A&E Television Networks, has got the job and is negotiating his exit and arrival. AETN sells shows like Ice Road Truckers, Gene Simmons Family Jewels and Steven Seagal: Lawman as well many reality, crime and history series.
Ian tells the AETN story here.
Belter
Peter Oborne, his researcher Frances Weaver, the Centre for Policy Studies, The Spectator and The Telegraph, are all lined up today against Europhilia. As Euro governments and some of their banks teeter and totter, they've decided to machine gun the UK "establishment" that backed the Euro and the European venture.
Targets, in order: The FT in general, Lex and Philip Stephens in particular.
The CBI, boss Adair Turner, Niall Fitzgerald of Unilever, Colin Marshall of BA, David Simon of BA.
The BBC, The Today programme.
Andrew Rawnsley of The Observer.
Tony Blair, Peter Mandelson, Michael Heseltine, Ken Clarke, Charles Kennedy, Danny Alexander. Lord Patten, Chairman of the BBC Trust; Diane Coyle, vice-chair of the BBC Trust.
One suspects the spray of bullets will go wider when the Oborne/Weaver CPS tract "Guilty Men" is finally published.
Targets, in order: The FT in general, Lex and Philip Stephens in particular.
The CBI, boss Adair Turner, Niall Fitzgerald of Unilever, Colin Marshall of BA, David Simon of BA.
The BBC, The Today programme.
Andrew Rawnsley of The Observer.
Tony Blair, Peter Mandelson, Michael Heseltine, Ken Clarke, Charles Kennedy, Danny Alexander. Lord Patten, Chairman of the BBC Trust; Diane Coyle, vice-chair of the BBC Trust.
One suspects the spray of bullets will go wider when the Oborne/Weaver CPS tract "Guilty Men" is finally published.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Moving pictures
The proposed big screen on the plaza at MediaCity UK has undergone yet another evolution. Here's the seductive first offering....
And the grotesque second proposition
Now someone at Peel has finally realised that south facing is not great in daylight... so it's moved to the end of the tram-stop, and has become doubled sided. The screens are big (around 4.5m by 7m) so there isn't much elegance about the supports. The planners' view is awaited.
And the grotesque second proposition
Now someone at Peel has finally realised that south facing is not great in daylight... so it's moved to the end of the tram-stop, and has become doubled sided. The screens are big (around 4.5m by 7m) so there isn't much elegance about the supports. The planners' view is awaited.
You can't hide your pryin' eyes
Dave Hill's piece in The Guardian, on the BBC deciding against moving Eastenders east to the Olympic Park post 2012, suggests some internal defiance of the writ of Mark Thompson.
He's found an insider to the negotiations (though not, apparently, from the BBC side) to say "This had been going on for the best part of a year. They were happy with the financing. Mark Thompson really wanted it to happen. There were architect's drawings, everything. City Airport had even agreed to divert flights because they were worried about noise when they were filming scenes outside."
Hill's sources say the stumbling block was a wall. I understand it was a drama requirement for an unfeasibly high wall, of Great Chinese proportions, to keep the filming away from the eyes of occupants of tall buildings on the site.
This doesn't seem to be a problem for Coronation Street in their move to MediaCityUK. Their new home is directly overlooked by not one, but two BBC buildings and a giant block of flats, just across the Ship Canal. That Adam Crozier gets things done, Lord Patten.
He's found an insider to the negotiations (though not, apparently, from the BBC side) to say "This had been going on for the best part of a year. They were happy with the financing. Mark Thompson really wanted it to happen. There were architect's drawings, everything. City Airport had even agreed to divert flights because they were worried about noise when they were filming scenes outside."
Hill's sources say the stumbling block was a wall. I understand it was a drama requirement for an unfeasibly high wall, of Great Chinese proportions, to keep the filming away from the eyes of occupants of tall buildings on the site.
This doesn't seem to be a problem for Coronation Street in their move to MediaCityUK. Their new home is directly overlooked by not one, but two BBC buildings and a giant block of flats, just across the Ship Canal. That Adam Crozier gets things done, Lord Patten.
Tuesday, September 20, 2011
More pipes
A rambling report from the BBC Trust on the "national" radio services in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, offers few crisp insights and some daft ideas.
Here's the hardest message: "Radio Scotland brings a large number of listeners to the BBC portfolio in Scotland but an eclectic schedule has been adversely affecting overall audience impressions of the station". A clear warning to Jeff Zycinski, the Bill Cotton of Inverness, to get a grip. There's also some debate in the full report about why BBC Radio Scotland costs so much to run, compared with the others - some £32.6 million last year. Four production centres, each with managers - and then managers travelling between them - would be one daft and easily removed overhead.
There are odd recommendations about music policy which, probably to the glee of the (commercial) Radio Centre, will increase the number of harp and uilleann pipe recordings heard daytime in Wales and in the evening in Scotland. The sensible bit is that the management should set new measurable objectives for all the stations AFTER the cuts in DQF have been revealed. There's also a late realisation that these "national stations" should co-ordinate more with Tim Davie's isolationist Audio & Music empire.
Meanwhile, I shall be applying for a job as Line Spacing Editorial Advisor, shortly to be advertised by the Trust.
Here's the hardest message: "Radio Scotland brings a large number of listeners to the BBC portfolio in Scotland but an eclectic schedule has been adversely affecting overall audience impressions of the station". A clear warning to Jeff Zycinski, the Bill Cotton of Inverness, to get a grip. There's also some debate in the full report about why BBC Radio Scotland costs so much to run, compared with the others - some £32.6 million last year. Four production centres, each with managers - and then managers travelling between them - would be one daft and easily removed overhead.
There are odd recommendations about music policy which, probably to the glee of the (commercial) Radio Centre, will increase the number of harp and uilleann pipe recordings heard daytime in Wales and in the evening in Scotland. The sensible bit is that the management should set new measurable objectives for all the stations AFTER the cuts in DQF have been revealed. There's also a late realisation that these "national stations" should co-ordinate more with Tim Davie's isolationist Audio & Music empire.
Meanwhile, I shall be applying for a job as Line Spacing Editorial Advisor, shortly to be advertised by the Trust.
Politics of the right v Morgan
And it's a welcome return for our weekly chart tracking the fortunes of Piers Morgan (CNN) as he battles for the attention of America's 25 to 54 year-olds watching news channel chat shows. His rivals - Sean Hannity (Fox News) Rachel Maddow (MSNBC) and Dr Drew (HLN). Monday is a blip - Morgan got the night off for CNN's GOP debate (hence the low Hannity rating).
Dr Parnassas, I presume ?
Making cuts and improving quality clearly requires flights of fancy at the BBC.
Plane speaking
There's a bit I don't get in the BBC's rationale for not moving Eastenders into the Olympic Park post-2012. The refusal of Boris' offer is quite acceptable if the site is more expensive, and that's that.
The additional argument provided (Andrew Bowden puts it clearly here) - about aircraft noise disrupting production - is less helpful. If Walford is in the East End, then the sounds of jets from City Airport must make it more authentic. The only issue is outdoor night-time shots, meant to be after midnight, filmed in the daytime. Long daytime sequences with major retakes might require edits on sound as well as vision - but in multi-camera shooting of soaps, the idea is to keep editing to a minimum by getting clean takes. Isn't it ?
The additional argument provided (Andrew Bowden puts it clearly here) - about aircraft noise disrupting production - is less helpful. If Walford is in the East End, then the sounds of jets from City Airport must make it more authentic. The only issue is outdoor night-time shots, meant to be after midnight, filmed in the daytime. Long daytime sequences with major retakes might require edits on sound as well as vision - but in multi-camera shooting of soaps, the idea is to keep editing to a minimum by getting clean takes. Isn't it ?
Monday, September 19, 2011
Enough
This BBC in Salford thing is going too far in one year. OK Sports Personality of the Year 2011 (but you won't get an audience of the same size as the NEC, the Echo Area, or the Sheffield Arena). Now it seems the Queen will get her Royal Variety fix at the Lowry, across the dock from MediaCityUK.
What next ? Christmas Carols from St Clement's, Ordsall rather than King's College ? Jools Holland's Hootenanny from The Willows ? Strictly specials from Buile Hill Park Hall ?
What next ? Christmas Carols from St Clement's, Ordsall rather than King's College ? Jools Holland's Hootenanny from The Willows ? Strictly specials from Buile Hill Park Hall ?
Paxo Mundo
A longer journey to work from Stonor next week for Paxo; he's heading to The Aldwych on Monday 26 September, to present an edition of Newshour on the BBC World Service. (Kirsty Wark's coverning Newsnight). Could he have been persuaded to the radio microphone by Newsnight editor Peter Rippon, a Newshour alumni, or perhaps Lucy Walker, recently at Newsnight on attachment and now back minding Newshour at Bush House ?
It's a full week of guest presenters for Newshour: Tuesday is Christine Ockrent, born in Belgium, but a French newspaper and tv news star of longstanding, most recently working on France 24's overseas strategy. Redi Tlhabi, formerly of SABC, presents from Johannesburg on Wednesday. Christiane Amanpour anchors from New York on Thursday; and it's back to WC2 for Evan Davis on Friday.
It's a full week of guest presenters for Newshour: Tuesday is Christine Ockrent, born in Belgium, but a French newspaper and tv news star of longstanding, most recently working on France 24's overseas strategy. Redi Tlhabi, formerly of SABC, presents from Johannesburg on Wednesday. Christiane Amanpour anchors from New York on Thursday; and it's back to WC2 for Evan Davis on Friday.
No comfort
One of my favourite US sites, TV Newser, brings us the announcement that NBC news presenter Lester Holt will be fronting Dateline NBC, as well as his regular gigs on weekend "Today" and "Nightly News".
An element of the report tickled me. Apparently, Lester's "nickname is Iron Pants around the office, a testament to his work ethic". Two things here - first, are we sure Iron Pants is a nickname driven by someone's hard work ? And second, anyone got any office nicknames for UK news presenters ?
An element of the report tickled me. Apparently, Lester's "nickname is Iron Pants around the office, a testament to his work ethic". Two things here - first, are we sure Iron Pants is a nickname driven by someone's hard work ? And second, anyone got any office nicknames for UK news presenters ?
- USAF General Curtis LeMay, who planned and carried out bombing of Japan in the Second World War, was known as "Old Iron Pants". Stalin supporter Vyacheslav Molotov was christened "Iron Pants" for his negotiating toughness, also in the Second World War. CBS' Walter Cronkite acquired the nickname, not for being unflappable, but because "he never seemed to need a bathroom break". This legend started when the networks began to report political conventions from pods swinging high in the conference centres, miles from decent plumbing. It's this heritage that might explain Lester's handle.
Lavender list
Sorry to hark on about Patten; he's declared himself in favour of more, older women on the BBC.
In his Observer interview with Rachel Cooke, the BBC Chairman explained himself thus: "First of all, I'm 67, for heaven's sake, and I'm married to a charming and beautiful 66-year-old, and I would be delighted if she was the face of anything on television".
Delighted to help. What can we suggest for Lady Patten of Barnes, formerly Mary Lavender St Leger Patten nee Thornton ?
Relocation, relocation. Lady Patten and family followed the Governor to Hong Kong for five years (though he commuted to Brussels when EU Commissioner, and to Belfast, when trying to sort out Northern Ireland policing). Home is Barnes, but she does seem to have an interest in a property management company in Woodstock Road, Oxford.
Holiday 2012. The family doesn't stint on breaks. There's the house in Les Cabannes, north of Toulouse in France profonde. South Africa, where Lavender spent some time before meeting Chris at Oxford University, was a recent, vinous trip. There've been visits to Jordan and India. The Galapagos are on the wish list.
Sounds of the Seventies. Older Tories were sceptical of Lavender's dress-style as an MPs wife in the 70s. According to Michael White, they used to mutter "hippy" under their breath. She still favours purple scarves.
World Food. Husband likes classy, classic food, but only has two recipes - beef casserole, and something with scallops - so it's safe to say that Lavvy looks after the cooking, when Chris is not. He can help with the wine-matching.
BBC Sport: Golf and tennis are her favoured sporting pastimes; she's been spotted several times on Centre Court.
Law in Action: Lav switched from classics to law at St Hilda's Oxford. She formally qualified as a barrister in 1987. She now works sometimes on divorce mediation for a group in Twickenham.
In his Observer interview with Rachel Cooke, the BBC Chairman explained himself thus: "First of all, I'm 67, for heaven's sake, and I'm married to a charming and beautiful 66-year-old, and I would be delighted if she was the face of anything on television".
Delighted to help. What can we suggest for Lady Patten of Barnes, formerly Mary Lavender St Leger Patten nee Thornton ?
Relocation, relocation. Lady Patten and family followed the Governor to Hong Kong for five years (though he commuted to Brussels when EU Commissioner, and to Belfast, when trying to sort out Northern Ireland policing). Home is Barnes, but she does seem to have an interest in a property management company in Woodstock Road, Oxford.
Holiday 2012. The family doesn't stint on breaks. There's the house in Les Cabannes, north of Toulouse in France profonde. South Africa, where Lavender spent some time before meeting Chris at Oxford University, was a recent, vinous trip. There've been visits to Jordan and India. The Galapagos are on the wish list.
Sounds of the Seventies. Older Tories were sceptical of Lavender's dress-style as an MPs wife in the 70s. According to Michael White, they used to mutter "hippy" under their breath. She still favours purple scarves.
World Food. Husband likes classy, classic food, but only has two recipes - beef casserole, and something with scallops - so it's safe to say that Lavvy looks after the cooking, when Chris is not. He can help with the wine-matching.
BBC Sport: Golf and tennis are her favoured sporting pastimes; she's been spotted several times on Centre Court.
Law in Action: Lav switched from classics to law at St Hilda's Oxford. She formally qualified as a barrister in 1987. She now works sometimes on divorce mediation for a group in Twickenham.
Political
Michael Crick has set a hare running in his interview with The Independent today. The former Newsnight political editor says he was being edged out before he jumped ship to C4. So WHO did the suits want as replacement ? When will they reveal their hand ? Can they still afford the post, under DQF ?
Here's Crick's story: "Things got a bit difficult for me on Newsnight at the end. I was 19 years on Newsnight and 18 of them were extremely happy and then towards the end, about a year ago, they made it clear to me that they wanted me to stop being the political editor and do another job, which was ill-defined. They sort of said it would involve politics but they wanted to bring in somebody else as political editor and I wasn't very happy with that, to put it mildly."
Here's Crick's story: "Things got a bit difficult for me on Newsnight at the end. I was 19 years on Newsnight and 18 of them were extremely happy and then towards the end, about a year ago, they made it clear to me that they wanted me to stop being the political editor and do another job, which was ill-defined. They sort of said it would involve politics but they wanted to bring in somebody else as political editor and I wasn't very happy with that, to put it mildly."
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Oh, the expenses of it all !
BBC Sport is on a hiding to nothing in sorting out costs, accommodation and expenses for the London Olympics - but doesn't seem to be helping itself on the PR front. The Mail today goes off on one, about a slightly half-baked rule that staff who live more than 90 minutes away from the venue by public transport (as calculated by the current TFL journey planner) may qualify for overnight accommodation.
Rather than quote all the Mail's outrage, here's the bit attributed to a BBC spokeswoman. ‘We will only explore accommodation options for essential staff who would have to spend more than an hour-and-a-half each day on public transport. This excludes the time taken getting to and from their station, and into and through security at the Olympic sites. In many cases this will be very early in the morning or late at night given the round-the-clock broadcasting demands. We are also encouraging staff to stay with family or friends when that is possible. We have not yet finalised staff numbers working on the Games or accommodation details. However we have agreed the principle that the accommodation for staff will be predominately budget with much of it student accommodation. There will be no top-range hotels for staff.’
The big worry is that, nine months away from the event, this hasn't been sorted. Holiday Inn rooms (the "official Olympic provider") are running at more that £315 a night. The proposed Gunnell family campsite at Chigwell is now a non-runner. I find it hard to believe that usefully-placed halls of residence haven't all got customers sorted.
How will the BBC determine where home is for the staff ? How many will have moved to Salford ? Will they get mileage and London hotels paid ? How many will be renting in Salford, while keeping London bases ? All other terms and conditions for staff are in terms of mileage, not duration of journey - is this a new precedent ?
This may help beleaguered BBC planners think more clearly: the map shows stations that are 1 hour away from a London mainline station; that would allow, say, 15 minutes to get to St Pancras and 15 minutes on a "Javelin" to Stratford International. Should the BBC really pay expenses for non-Salford staff who choose to live further away from their work than this ?
Rather than quote all the Mail's outrage, here's the bit attributed to a BBC spokeswoman. ‘We will only explore accommodation options for essential staff who would have to spend more than an hour-and-a-half each day on public transport. This excludes the time taken getting to and from their station, and into and through security at the Olympic sites. In many cases this will be very early in the morning or late at night given the round-the-clock broadcasting demands. We are also encouraging staff to stay with family or friends when that is possible. We have not yet finalised staff numbers working on the Games or accommodation details. However we have agreed the principle that the accommodation for staff will be predominately budget with much of it student accommodation. There will be no top-range hotels for staff.’
The big worry is that, nine months away from the event, this hasn't been sorted. Holiday Inn rooms (the "official Olympic provider") are running at more that £315 a night. The proposed Gunnell family campsite at Chigwell is now a non-runner. I find it hard to believe that usefully-placed halls of residence haven't all got customers sorted.
How will the BBC determine where home is for the staff ? How many will have moved to Salford ? Will they get mileage and London hotels paid ? How many will be renting in Salford, while keeping London bases ? All other terms and conditions for staff are in terms of mileage, not duration of journey - is this a new precedent ?
This may help beleaguered BBC planners think more clearly: the map shows stations that are 1 hour away from a London mainline station; that would allow, say, 15 minutes to get to St Pancras and 15 minutes on a "Javelin" to Stratford International. Should the BBC really pay expenses for non-Salford staff who choose to live further away from their work than this ?
Patten's a Manc
BBC North suits put the Chairman of the Trust, Lord Patten, through a MediaCity UK "total immersion" day at the start of the week, and it's more than paid off.
In an interview for The Observer, Rachel Cooke asked him what he thought about high profile staff and talent who'd shied away from the move to Salford.
Patten begins gently by telling me that his grandparents were both headteachers in Manchester; he had Didsbury aunties and, as a boy, used to follow Brian Statham, the Lancashire fast bowler, from ground to ground, a bottle of Tizer and Sandwich Spread sarnies in his knapsack. And then… he's off! "This sort of [attitude]: 'Do they have paninis in Manchester?'… It's unbelievable. [The city has] the best Indian food, some wonderful Chinese restaurants, great music, great jazz – my cousin used to run a jazz club there. [From Salford Quays] you can see Old Trafford, Maine Road is round the corner, you can see the Pennines on two sides. I was talking to some senior executives at 5 Live yesterday. They were all moving into larger houses, the schools they were finding were terrific. I see my own kids struggling in London to afford anything, particularly near a decent Ofsted school, and I'm just amazed at the attitude of some of the media towards Salford. It is, for heaven's sake, the British Broadcasting Corporation, not the Surrey Broadcasting Corporation. There's so much talent available there. The amount of writing talent there's been in the north west!"
Mind you, the whole tenor of the interview confirms others' suspicions. It's clear Patten now adores the job and, as Rachel says, has gone native.
In an interview for The Observer, Rachel Cooke asked him what he thought about high profile staff and talent who'd shied away from the move to Salford.
Patten begins gently by telling me that his grandparents were both headteachers in Manchester; he had Didsbury aunties and, as a boy, used to follow Brian Statham, the Lancashire fast bowler, from ground to ground, a bottle of Tizer and Sandwich Spread sarnies in his knapsack. And then… he's off! "This sort of [attitude]: 'Do they have paninis in Manchester?'… It's unbelievable. [The city has] the best Indian food, some wonderful Chinese restaurants, great music, great jazz – my cousin used to run a jazz club there. [From Salford Quays] you can see Old Trafford, Maine Road is round the corner, you can see the Pennines on two sides. I was talking to some senior executives at 5 Live yesterday. They were all moving into larger houses, the schools they were finding were terrific. I see my own kids struggling in London to afford anything, particularly near a decent Ofsted school, and I'm just amazed at the attitude of some of the media towards Salford. It is, for heaven's sake, the British Broadcasting Corporation, not the Surrey Broadcasting Corporation. There's so much talent available there. The amount of writing talent there's been in the north west!"
Mind you, the whole tenor of the interview confirms others' suspicions. It's clear Patten now adores the job and, as Rachel says, has gone native.
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Projected
A little late to this, but a great way to pass some time this weekend. Dramatic projections, entitled "Luminous Flux", on the Liver Building in Liverpool, to mark its 100th Anniversary, and the opening of the nearby New Museum of Liverpool in July this year. It was created by "The Macula", a trio of Czech video mapping specialists. The Liver Building was one of the first in the world to be constructed using reinforced concrete, and, as 90m, was deemed a "skyscraper". It was the tallest building in Liverpool until 1965 and the arrival of the Radio City Tower.
Luminous Flux from the macula on Vimeo.
Luminous Flux from the macula on Vimeo.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Dodgy, Quite Frankly
Some more dates for your diaries. The BBC's final Delivering Quality First proposals go to the Trust on 22 September, and "key elements" will be communicated to staff on October 5th. But I'm afraid the information-lite hallmark of this palaver will mean, even in October, there'll be plenty of figures and targets, but much less on how they'll be met.
Even at this late stage, there's a possibility that an Orchestra might have to go. Up until the wire, there's been to-ing and fro-ing on allocating cuts between BBC3 and BBC4, with 4 shaving some of 3's money. Sport are heroes for the F1 deal with Sky, but there are still rights at risk, including radio deals for 5Live. Thommo wants to turn off the Radio LW transmitter, but wiser voices are counselling against an early move in this direction - not least to keep Test Match Special available on analogue.
The central finance team are trying to build their own pot of money (for control purposes), but the output divisions are crying foul. In a shameless tit-for-tat, some are winning their full share of the DQF baseline, but at a price of having to absorb inflation as well as hitting the cuts target. The BBC's forecast of 3% p.a. in this equation may be, unfortunately, a little light.
Even at this late stage, there's a possibility that an Orchestra might have to go. Up until the wire, there's been to-ing and fro-ing on allocating cuts between BBC3 and BBC4, with 4 shaving some of 3's money. Sport are heroes for the F1 deal with Sky, but there are still rights at risk, including radio deals for 5Live. Thommo wants to turn off the Radio LW transmitter, but wiser voices are counselling against an early move in this direction - not least to keep Test Match Special available on analogue.
The central finance team are trying to build their own pot of money (for control purposes), but the output divisions are crying foul. In a shameless tit-for-tat, some are winning their full share of the DQF baseline, but at a price of having to absorb inflation as well as hitting the cuts target. The BBC's forecast of 3% p.a. in this equation may be, unfortunately, a little light.
Money box
It was interesting to hear that Lord Patten is prepared to "bear down" on the next DG's salary, but is not, apparently, tough enough to cut Mark Thompson's current deal. Could there be an understanding between them ?
Let's take my (and others') theory that Mark will leave after the Olympics, ideally for a job in the States. He can't, like Mark Byford, be made redundant - there'll have to be a new DG, so there's no lump sum coming that way. Mark has two spells of service - 23 years from 1979 to 2002, and then (if he leaves in 2012) eight years from 2004. Depending on how he moved his pension pot in the two years at Channel 4, he could clock up 31 to 33 years of service, producing a pension paying more than 50% of his final salary. (That's why the Executive have only agreed to "sacrifice" one month's pay a year, rather take a formal cut). If 2012 is his final year, it would give him over £300k a year; it could be more if he's rolled up some of the £435k a year he got from Channel 4. Mark's current total package is £779k a year - the extra £66k on top of salary is supposed to help get round the cap on ginormous pension pots.
The issue for Mark is that, without a lump sum, his pension is only payable at 60. He'll be 55 in July 2012.
Let's take my (and others') theory that Mark will leave after the Olympics, ideally for a job in the States. He can't, like Mark Byford, be made redundant - there'll have to be a new DG, so there's no lump sum coming that way. Mark has two spells of service - 23 years from 1979 to 2002, and then (if he leaves in 2012) eight years from 2004. Depending on how he moved his pension pot in the two years at Channel 4, he could clock up 31 to 33 years of service, producing a pension paying more than 50% of his final salary. (That's why the Executive have only agreed to "sacrifice" one month's pay a year, rather take a formal cut). If 2012 is his final year, it would give him over £300k a year; it could be more if he's rolled up some of the £435k a year he got from Channel 4. Mark's current total package is £779k a year - the extra £66k on top of salary is supposed to help get round the cap on ginormous pension pots.
The issue for Mark is that, without a lump sum, his pension is only payable at 60. He'll be 55 in July 2012.
Close
A jovial Lord Patten ended a round of pre-DQF interviews last night, with a session with Peter Bazalgette in front of the Royal Television Society's annual tree-hugging convention in Cambridge.
"Don't panic" Patten had words of comfort for nearly everybody. Having talked hard on ToughTalk the previous day (I may have got that the wrong way round) about not paying the next DG as much as the current incumbent, he was a nice as pie about Thommo. The Chairman said he and Mark were as "close as lips and teeth" - a Chinese saying most recently used about its relationship with North Korea.
On BBC4 - "I hope to continue to be able to watch BBC Four" On the size of BBC News - "I'm pretty relaxed about looking at the BBC's share of the news market" On BBC Worldwide's bid for more capital - he's looking forward to "constructively discussing with the board of Worldwide . . . over the coming months how [it] could march on to even greater success”.
The bath was not so warm for others: "We may have to close some foreign bureaux but we will still have more than almost any other news organisation"; "We won't be able to spend as much money on sport. I suspect we won't be able to spend as much money on entertainment".
"Don't panic" Patten had words of comfort for nearly everybody. Having talked hard on ToughTalk the previous day (I may have got that the wrong way round) about not paying the next DG as much as the current incumbent, he was a nice as pie about Thommo. The Chairman said he and Mark were as "close as lips and teeth" - a Chinese saying most recently used about its relationship with North Korea.
On BBC4 - "I hope to continue to be able to watch BBC Four" On the size of BBC News - "I'm pretty relaxed about looking at the BBC's share of the news market" On BBC Worldwide's bid for more capital - he's looking forward to "constructively discussing with the board of Worldwide . . . over the coming months how [it] could march on to even greater success”.
The bath was not so warm for others: "We may have to close some foreign bureaux but we will still have more than almost any other news organisation"; "We won't be able to spend as much money on sport. I suspect we won't be able to spend as much money on entertainment".
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Madness
Angry. Just found a visualisation of the proposed BBC Newsroom at Broadcasting House, produced by architects HOK. All wrong - but nobody ever listened to me. The hub and spoke layout is for newsroom creationists - not for journalism.
The tired literalism of this layout - left, the BBC, right The Telegraph - actually prevents collaboration in news output, defends tired hierarchies, and stops easy movement between teams. Looks good to senior executives pointing from balconies - I haven't seen anything as bad for working together since the Newsgathering "Circle the wagons, Clint" layout of 1998. And don't get me on the thing (not shown) that'll be swinging over the heads of the journalists. Patten would never have paid for it. Rant over
The tired literalism of this layout - left, the BBC, right The Telegraph - actually prevents collaboration in news output, defends tired hierarchies, and stops easy movement between teams. Looks good to senior executives pointing from balconies - I haven't seen anything as bad for working together since the Newsgathering "Circle the wagons, Clint" layout of 1998. And don't get me on the thing (not shown) that'll be swinging over the heads of the journalists. Patten would never have paid for it. Rant over
Making inquiries
The Independent has been trawling through the files listing 17,000 searches for "information" carried out by private investigator Steve Whittamore at the behest of various newspapers. The Independent has "obtained" these files from the Operation Motorman investigation of 2003.
There's a number of "BBC" names in the lists. Jeremy Clarkson, in 1997, Jonathan Ross in 1999 (file marked "wife"), Peter Salmon in 2000 (file marked "Belair Beverly Hills Blag") , and undated inquiries about Jeremy Paxman and Mark Lawrenson. Mark's file shows three vehicle checks and a request to discover if he had business dealings with Lionel Blair.
Full story here.
There's a number of "BBC" names in the lists. Jeremy Clarkson, in 1997, Jonathan Ross in 1999 (file marked "wife"), Peter Salmon in 2000 (file marked "Belair Beverly Hills Blag") , and undated inquiries about Jeremy Paxman and Mark Lawrenson. Mark's file shows three vehicle checks and a request to discover if he had business dealings with Lionel Blair.
Full story here.
Timing
Edited highlights of a feature in Music Week on a forthcoming Pink Floyd season on Radio 2.
Radio 2 and 6 Music controller Bob Shennan said: “This is one of the opportunities for us to do something I am really keen for Radio 2 to do – take an iconic artist or band, particularly one you don’t get to hear that often on the radio, or certainly outside of the BBC, and really celebrate them, give them more depth. Rather than doing one-off documentaries we are trying to get really intelligent analysis as well as a celebration of the artists.” ......
The Pink Floyd Season will coincide with the first phase of EMI’s extensive re-issue campaign of the band’s classic catalogue. September 26 sees the re-release of the band’s classic The Dark Side Of The Moon album in a six-disc Immersion boxed set and two-disc Experience set, as well as a collector’s vinyl LP and various digital formats. It marks the start of a four-phase Pink Floyd campaign that is set to be one of the biggest of the year, with EMI looking to repeat the success it had with its Beatles reissue campaign of 2009
Radio 2 and 6 Music controller Bob Shennan said: “This is one of the opportunities for us to do something I am really keen for Radio 2 to do – take an iconic artist or band, particularly one you don’t get to hear that often on the radio, or certainly outside of the BBC, and really celebrate them, give them more depth. Rather than doing one-off documentaries we are trying to get really intelligent analysis as well as a celebration of the artists.” ......
The Pink Floyd Season will coincide with the first phase of EMI’s extensive re-issue campaign of the band’s classic catalogue. September 26 sees the re-release of the band’s classic The Dark Side Of The Moon album in a six-disc Immersion boxed set and two-disc Experience set, as well as a collector’s vinyl LP and various digital formats. It marks the start of a four-phase Pink Floyd campaign that is set to be one of the biggest of the year, with EMI looking to repeat the success it had with its Beatles reissue campaign of 2009
Dishy
Otuside broadcast engineers SIS have just announced that they're to build a satellite farm (their preferred word is 'broadcast teleport') on land just over the canal from MediaCityUK.
There'll be a total of nine dishes. Can someone at Television Centre go and count the dishes at the back of the multi-storey car park - I can't quite see from here. Eight ? Nine ? Spooky.
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Penetrative
Lord Patten, Chairman of the BBC Trust, will be on HardTalk, on the BBC News Channel on Thursday.
The good Lord was told by host Stephen Sackur that he's made more appearances on the show than anyone else, other than Shimon Peres. I've tracked down October 2003, December 2005, June 2007, October 2008 and September 2010.
Let's hope that in September 2011, Stephen finally wrangles half a story out of the panjandrum.
The good Lord was told by host Stephen Sackur that he's made more appearances on the show than anyone else, other than Shimon Peres. I've tracked down October 2003, December 2005, June 2007, October 2008 and September 2010.
Let's hope that in September 2011, Stephen finally wrangles half a story out of the panjandrum.
Gearing
Outrage in the Telegraph this week at the revelation that NHS HR boss Clare Chapman earned a £40k bonus this year, on top of a salary of £230k. Clare is moving back to the private sector after four years in the role - looking after around 1.4m employees (the NHS is the seventh biggest employer in the world, on a par with Indian Railways).
No tips so far on a permanent successor. Will the BBC's Lucy Adams apply ? She joined Auntie in 2009, earning £320k for looking after an estimated staff of 22,000. She's now expanded her role to Director of Business Operations, after being taken off the Executive Board by Mark Thompson, and is on a package worth £367k.
On a per employee basis, Ms Chapman cost the NHS £0.19 and Ms Adams cost the BBC around £14.00. If the BBC's workforce is cut to, say, 18,000 under DQF - and the HR quotient of Adams' salary was unchanged, that would work out at around £17.70 per employee.
No tips so far on a permanent successor. Will the BBC's Lucy Adams apply ? She joined Auntie in 2009, earning £320k for looking after an estimated staff of 22,000. She's now expanded her role to Director of Business Operations, after being taken off the Executive Board by Mark Thompson, and is on a package worth £367k.
On a per employee basis, Ms Chapman cost the NHS £0.19 and Ms Adams cost the BBC around £14.00. If the BBC's workforce is cut to, say, 18,000 under DQF - and the HR quotient of Adams' salary was unchanged, that would work out at around £17.70 per employee.
Tuesday, September 13, 2011
Dipping
This blog likes to keep you ahead of the game on the BBC and its machinations. So I can confidently tell you that many middle managers are going through a most extraordinary "sheep dip" ahead of formal revelations about Delivering Quality First. Summoned in small groups into the presence of Executive Board members, there's an awkward silence as the conversation starts....
Executive: "So, what's the mood amongst the troops ?"
Supplicants: (thinking, you're about to make 20% cuts, whaddya think ?) "Oh, not bad, all things considered"
Executive: "Well, my door is always open if anyone's really worried. Difficult decisions ahead, but this is all about managing creativity"
Supplicants: (thinking, you really mean making the same programmes for less money) "Creativity is vital to us all"
Executive: "Excellent. Have you all had enough of your own sandwiches ? Then I must press on to a much more important meeting. But keep the conversation going amongst yourselves...."
These information-lite sessions are expected to last all this week. Meanwhile, the Guardian has picked up on stuff coming from a meeting of the BBC's Advisory Council For England today. This suggests that Lord Patten has biffed plans for English super-regions, to run regional and local output, based on Salford, Birmingham, Bristol and Norwich. I'm not so sure this is a dead duck - there's some protectionism in the Advisory Council make-up, which in itself might be reduced from 12 jolly-regional-meetings to four as well. Compromise is in the air... .
Executive: "So, what's the mood amongst the troops ?"
Supplicants: (thinking, you're about to make 20% cuts, whaddya think ?) "Oh, not bad, all things considered"
Executive: "Well, my door is always open if anyone's really worried. Difficult decisions ahead, but this is all about managing creativity"
Supplicants: (thinking, you really mean making the same programmes for less money) "Creativity is vital to us all"
Executive: "Excellent. Have you all had enough of your own sandwiches ? Then I must press on to a much more important meeting. But keep the conversation going amongst yourselves...."
These information-lite sessions are expected to last all this week. Meanwhile, the Guardian has picked up on stuff coming from a meeting of the BBC's Advisory Council For England today. This suggests that Lord Patten has biffed plans for English super-regions, to run regional and local output, based on Salford, Birmingham, Bristol and Norwich. I'm not so sure this is a dead duck - there's some protectionism in the Advisory Council make-up, which in itself might be reduced from 12 jolly-regional-meetings to four as well. Compromise is in the air... .
B-b-breaking
0930 Tuesday: Breaking: Sky News audio out of sync with Sky News' mouths moving. On Freeview, at least.
Monday, September 12, 2011
Stretching boundaries
Boundary Commission News: "We propose that the existing Manchester Central constituency extends west to incorporate wards from the City of Salford, specifically Salford Quays and the surrounding area".
Could this mean no more MediacityUK photo-opportunities for Salford-born pocket battleship Hazel Blears, current MP for Salford and Eccles ? Perhaps hello to Stretford's own Tony Lloyd, current MP for Manchester Central, former business lecturer at Salford University and Trafford councillor ?
Could this mean no more MediacityUK photo-opportunities for Salford-born pocket battleship Hazel Blears, current MP for Salford and Eccles ? Perhaps hello to Stretford's own Tony Lloyd, current MP for Manchester Central, former business lecturer at Salford University and Trafford councillor ?
Dates, please
There's more than a little confusion about who did what when in the claims and counter-claims of Chancellor George Osborne and ex-dominatrix Natalie Rowe, who has today repeated her story that George used cocaine in her company.
George graduated in Modern History from Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1993. Somewhere along the line, he spent a "semester" as a Dean Rusk scholar at Davidson College, North Carolina. The Osborne biography at the Conservative Party says, after a short spell as a freelance journalist, he joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994. Other sources say before he joined the CRD, he spent some time as a data entry assistant in the NHS, recording death details for London; and worked at Selfridges; others say he "missed out on a position at a national newspaper" (despite having been joint editor of Isis at Oxford).
The photograph of Natalie and George together first emerged in October 2005; she'd sold it to the Sunday Mirror, but the same story spookily appeared in the News of The World (she now thinks her mobile phone may have been tapped by Glenn Mulcaire). George told the Mirror then "Twelve years ago a friend …went out with a woman called Natalie and they had a child together. I met them together occasionally in the autumn of 1993, and it soon became clear that my friend had started to use drugs. He became more and more addicted and I saw his life fall apart" In a later statement, George said "The allegations are completely untrue and dredging up a photo from when I was 22 years old is pretty desperate stuff. This is merely part of an absurd smear campaign". That would fix the photo between May 1993 and May 1994.
Natalie's story today says the photograph was from 1994, taken at a party to celebrate news of her pregnancy; the father to be was William "Sincs" Sinclair, a Bristol University graduate, who'd met Osborne through mutual friends. Natalie's child was born in September that year, which might put the date of the photo to January. Natalie's line today "I mean it’s been said in the newspapers that he [George] was at university. He wasn’t. At the time he was working for William Hague. I remember that vividly because he called William Hague insipid and I didn’t know what the word meant. I do now. So he definitely was in government by then but I think he was getting more and more of a high profile. So there was definitely, there was cocaine on that night on the table. George Osborne did take cocaine on that night. And not just on that night. He took it on a regular basis with me, with his friends".
This can't all be right. At the time of the photo George may have been working for the CRD, but he wasn't directly employed by William Hague until 1997, with the Tories in Opposition; in 1993/4 Hague was in junior roles at the Department of Social Security. It's possible, however, he was rude about Hague (another Magdalen graduate) en passant in Rowe's company.
George graduated in Modern History from Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1993. Somewhere along the line, he spent a "semester" as a Dean Rusk scholar at Davidson College, North Carolina. The Osborne biography at the Conservative Party says, after a short spell as a freelance journalist, he joined the Conservative Research Department in 1994. Other sources say before he joined the CRD, he spent some time as a data entry assistant in the NHS, recording death details for London; and worked at Selfridges; others say he "missed out on a position at a national newspaper" (despite having been joint editor of Isis at Oxford).
The photograph of Natalie and George together first emerged in October 2005; she'd sold it to the Sunday Mirror, but the same story spookily appeared in the News of The World (she now thinks her mobile phone may have been tapped by Glenn Mulcaire). George told the Mirror then "Twelve years ago a friend …went out with a woman called Natalie and they had a child together. I met them together occasionally in the autumn of 1993, and it soon became clear that my friend had started to use drugs. He became more and more addicted and I saw his life fall apart" In a later statement, George said "The allegations are completely untrue and dredging up a photo from when I was 22 years old is pretty desperate stuff. This is merely part of an absurd smear campaign". That would fix the photo between May 1993 and May 1994.
Natalie's story today says the photograph was from 1994, taken at a party to celebrate news of her pregnancy; the father to be was William "Sincs" Sinclair, a Bristol University graduate, who'd met Osborne through mutual friends. Natalie's child was born in September that year, which might put the date of the photo to January. Natalie's line today "I mean it’s been said in the newspapers that he [George] was at university. He wasn’t. At the time he was working for William Hague. I remember that vividly because he called William Hague insipid and I didn’t know what the word meant. I do now. So he definitely was in government by then but I think he was getting more and more of a high profile. So there was definitely, there was cocaine on that night on the table. George Osborne did take cocaine on that night. And not just on that night. He took it on a regular basis with me, with his friends".
This can't all be right. At the time of the photo George may have been working for the CRD, but he wasn't directly employed by William Hague until 1997, with the Tories in Opposition; in 1993/4 Hague was in junior roles at the Department of Social Security. It's possible, however, he was rude about Hague (another Magdalen graduate) en passant in Rowe's company.
Cow on the move
Baby Cow Productions (Manchester) are moving to The Greenhouse, MediaCityUK. They had to go somewhere - their previous office was in the BBC's New Broadcasting House in Oxford Road, now being cleared for new owners in the decampment to Salford Quays.
Mancunians Steve Coogan and Henry Normal set up the company in London first in 1999; the small Manchester operation only opened in 2005. In 2008, BBC Worldwide bought 25% of the Cow - producers of Gavin & Stacey and The Mighty Boosh, amongst other things. In June this year, Baby Cow Manchester and BBC Comedy (North), part of Vision Production, signed a year-long deal to develop scripts for production out of MediaCityUK.
Some readers will note that Baby Cow's London offices - at 33 Foley Street, W1 - are only paces away from The Crown and Sceptre, at number 26/27. We ought to hear funnier jokes..
Mancunians Steve Coogan and Henry Normal set up the company in London first in 1999; the small Manchester operation only opened in 2005. In 2008, BBC Worldwide bought 25% of the Cow - producers of Gavin & Stacey and The Mighty Boosh, amongst other things. In June this year, Baby Cow Manchester and BBC Comedy (North), part of Vision Production, signed a year-long deal to develop scripts for production out of MediaCityUK.
Some readers will note that Baby Cow's London offices - at 33 Foley Street, W1 - are only paces away from The Crown and Sceptre, at number 26/27. We ought to hear funnier jokes..
ITN landlords
ITN will shortly have new landlords on Gray's Inn Road. Great Portland Estates and the BP Pension fund have bought 200 and 214 Gray’s Inn Road for £133m.
200 was designed by Norman Foster specifically for ITN in 1989, but over the years it's contracted to fewer and fewer of the 10 floors, with other tenants coming in. 214 is largely car parking and back-up accommodation for ITN.
GPE reckon it's a good deal, with the investment in King's Cross/St Pancras continuing, and Crossrail coming soon at Farringdon. (When someone gives the Calthorpe Arms a lick of paint and a clean carpet, then I'll believe the area's coming up....)
Measuring up
The Guardian reports that Jeremy Hunt wants Ofcom to think of new ways of measuring media consumption, particularly news, suspecting that the rows about protecting media plurality against the expansionist ambitions of News International have not gone away for long.
Generally, media companies like being measured when the outcomes suit their business. In the days before convergence, it was inevitable that different metrics would be used. So we have ABC for newspapers, BARB for tv (except BBC Alba) and RAJAR for radio. In the world of online, we have ABCe, Nielsen, Comscore, Experian Hitwise and more. Now, in a multimedia world, some common currency would be really useful.
RAJAR claims a "hit" if you have listened to at least 5 minutes of a station within a 15 minutes period; BARB opts for 3 consecutive minutes. BARB produces some timeshift figures, but the BBC is pushing +7, a figure which totals original broadcasts and iPlayer catch-ups. Broadcasters are a bit sniffy about ABCe's, but the BBC seems reluctant to publish monthly online figures, except for iPlayer. (The BBC is yet to offer a global tv figure for this year's Royal Wedding - predicted, memorably, at 2 billion). The FT has moved away from ABCe's to an newer concept, Average Global Daily Audience, and is taking a few magazine players with it.
Probably, in terms of measuring the big picture, a single survey covering a rounded picture of each individual's media consumption habits would be the most useful tool. But you can't see BARB , RAJAR and ABC converging quite yet, when each is really trying to help their core subscribers hang on to the real customers - the advertisers.
Generally, media companies like being measured when the outcomes suit their business. In the days before convergence, it was inevitable that different metrics would be used. So we have ABC for newspapers, BARB for tv (except BBC Alba) and RAJAR for radio. In the world of online, we have ABCe, Nielsen, Comscore, Experian Hitwise and more. Now, in a multimedia world, some common currency would be really useful.
RAJAR claims a "hit" if you have listened to at least 5 minutes of a station within a 15 minutes period; BARB opts for 3 consecutive minutes. BARB produces some timeshift figures, but the BBC is pushing +7, a figure which totals original broadcasts and iPlayer catch-ups. Broadcasters are a bit sniffy about ABCe's, but the BBC seems reluctant to publish monthly online figures, except for iPlayer. (The BBC is yet to offer a global tv figure for this year's Royal Wedding - predicted, memorably, at 2 billion). The FT has moved away from ABCe's to an newer concept, Average Global Daily Audience, and is taking a few magazine players with it.
Probably, in terms of measuring the big picture, a single survey covering a rounded picture of each individual's media consumption habits would be the most useful tool. But you can't see BARB , RAJAR and ABC converging quite yet, when each is really trying to help their core subscribers hang on to the real customers - the advertisers.
Old fashioned
Football - again. I'm really not a fan of Bolton's Kevin Davies. Sometimes commentators call him "big", "strong", "brave", "old fashioned". He picked up the 100th booking of his career yesterday - and Manchester United's Tom Cleverly has some serious ligament damage after a tackle by Davies. I think the Premier League would be better without "old fashioned".
Counting yellow cards alone last season, Kevin picked up 10. I suspect you might guess the names of some of the others who broke into double figures.
Tiote and Nolan of Newscastle, Cattermole of Sunderland, Charlie Adam with Blackpool, Figueroa of Wigan, and Ivanovic of Chelsea.
Counting yellow cards alone last season, Kevin picked up 10. I suspect you might guess the names of some of the others who broke into double figures.
Tiote and Nolan of Newscastle, Cattermole of Sunderland, Charlie Adam with Blackpool, Figueroa of Wigan, and Ivanovic of Chelsea.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Farewell Hammersmith and Fulham ?
One of the buzz phrases coming out of the BBC's "Delivering Quality First" Review has been a "five-hub" strategy. This would mean, over time, concentrating production in Glasgow, Salford, Belfast, Cardiff/Bristol and London - hence recent twitches about the future home of network programmes made in Birmingham; uncontroversial, I thought, apart from concerns about The Archers.
But there's a bigger story. What I hadn't twigged previously was that the bean-counters believe the London base (of a much smaller BBC) should be just the re-furbished Broadcasting House (plus a few satellite buildings in W1). So the ambition is apparently to get out of London W12 altogether - emptying not just Television Centre, but the three major buildings on the White City site - White City 1, the Broadcast Centre and the Media Centre. There's still plenty of space at Pacific Quay, Glasgow, and room for expansion in Salford. And as each area takes a 16-20% cut, more space becomes available.
White City 1 opened in 1990, and has been given a makeover in the past two years - it's home to Panorama, other current affairs programmes, the Academy (code for training) and a range of suits. The Media Centre and the Broadcast Centre were opened in 2004, and house BBC Worldwide, Future Media and Technology, Red Bee productions and more suits and admin.
The former "Energy Centre" now provides production offices and studio for "The One Show" - who fought hard to come in from Birmingham in their formative year. Now they're trying to get grappling hooks into Broadcasting House, to avoid a move much further north. A few more will be round the grappling hook shop when this proposal is aired......
But there's a bigger story. What I hadn't twigged previously was that the bean-counters believe the London base (of a much smaller BBC) should be just the re-furbished Broadcasting House (plus a few satellite buildings in W1). So the ambition is apparently to get out of London W12 altogether - emptying not just Television Centre, but the three major buildings on the White City site - White City 1, the Broadcast Centre and the Media Centre. There's still plenty of space at Pacific Quay, Glasgow, and room for expansion in Salford. And as each area takes a 16-20% cut, more space becomes available.
White City 1 opened in 1990, and has been given a makeover in the past two years - it's home to Panorama, other current affairs programmes, the Academy (code for training) and a range of suits. The Media Centre and the Broadcast Centre were opened in 2004, and house BBC Worldwide, Future Media and Technology, Red Bee productions and more suits and admin.
The former "Energy Centre" now provides production offices and studio for "The One Show" - who fought hard to come in from Birmingham in their formative year. Now they're trying to get grappling hooks into Broadcasting House, to avoid a move much further north. A few more will be round the grappling hook shop when this proposal is aired......
Saturday, September 10, 2011
Friday, September 9, 2011
Veggie Salford ?
Mark Thompson entertained the burghers of Manchester last night at the CBI North West Dinner. He's building up his new media aphorisms ("One day tv programmes will be as accessible as books - people will be amazed they used to disappear"). He also teased BBC MediaCity refuseniks - "I can't move to Salford as I'm a vegetarian".
The Reverend William Cowherd had his church in King St, Salford, and 1809, preached a sermon advising his congregation to refrain from eating meat. His advocacy led to the foundation of The Vegetarian Society, in 1947 - its headquarters are in Altrincham.
However, a search through the Society's list of approved vegetarian restaurants produces none in Salford. On Yell, we are offered Milky Dream, a kosher/vegetarian restaurant in Prestwich. On Yelp, the veggie eateries come up well away from MediacityUK.
The Reverend William Cowherd had his church in King St, Salford, and 1809, preached a sermon advising his congregation to refrain from eating meat. His advocacy led to the foundation of The Vegetarian Society, in 1947 - its headquarters are in Altrincham.
The Hoose of Alba
Football, festivals and Dolly Parton repeats have done the trick for BBC Alba, according to the network's boss Margaret Mary Murray. But the secretive Gàidhealtachd apparently won't reveal their official audience figures for a full six months after the move to Freeview (which k.o'd a number of BBC Radio Networks).
The spin given to the Scotsman is that ratings are up 40%, or 100,000. Ms Murray tells the paper "A significant number of viewers are non-Gaelic speakers and what we find is that Gaelic speakers and non-Gaelic speakers view the channel in different ways. Gaelic speakers tune in to BBC Alba primarily for news, current affairs, entertainment and drama when we are able to offer it. They use the channel like English speakers view BBC1 or ITV1. The three subjects that pull non-Gaelic speakers in are documentaries, music programmes and sport".
Dangerous talk, if the BBC Trust hears it - growing an audience outside your target - and may we ask the cost ?
BBC Alba insists on using TNS, a Scottish polling company, to produce its figures, arguing that BARB, used by most other broadcasters, has insufficient representation amongst Gaelic speakers. Ms Murray's news suggests to me that Alba should be told to report figures from BARB; quicker, cheaper and transparent, if perhaps uncomfortable.
The spin given to the Scotsman is that ratings are up 40%, or 100,000. Ms Murray tells the paper "A significant number of viewers are non-Gaelic speakers and what we find is that Gaelic speakers and non-Gaelic speakers view the channel in different ways. Gaelic speakers tune in to BBC Alba primarily for news, current affairs, entertainment and drama when we are able to offer it. They use the channel like English speakers view BBC1 or ITV1. The three subjects that pull non-Gaelic speakers in are documentaries, music programmes and sport".
Dangerous talk, if the BBC Trust hears it - growing an audience outside your target - and may we ask the cost ?
BBC Alba insists on using TNS, a Scottish polling company, to produce its figures, arguing that BARB, used by most other broadcasters, has insufficient representation amongst Gaelic speakers. Ms Murray's news suggests to me that Alba should be told to report figures from BARB; quicker, cheaper and transparent, if perhaps uncomfortable.
- On its launch in September 2008, Alba claimed 610,000 viewers. By November and December, that had fallen back to 400,000. Since then, few figures have been published, but an average of 220,000 was reported to the BBC Trust in 2009, and figures of 200,000 early in 2010. In the 2001 census, there were 58,650 Gaelic speakers in Scotland.
Thursday, September 8, 2011
Amelia Hill
A busy time for Amelia Hill, Special Investigations Correspondent for The Guardian. Amelia, 37, seems to have started in journalism at the Glasgow Herald and Scotland on Sunday, where she spent three years, before moving to The Observer in 2000.
This week it was revealed that she was interviewed under caution (not arrested) by officers from Operation Weeting. A Guardian spokesman said "We can confirm Amelia Hill has been questioned in connection with an investigation into alleged leaks. On a broader point, journalists would no doubt be concerned if the police sought to criminalise conversations between off-record sources and reporters.” Last month a 51-year-old detective was arrested and suspended by the Met.
Here's one of Amelia's tweets from April.
Amelia's due to speak at the International Press Institute's World Congress in Taipei at the end of the month, explaining how she gets "inside access to normally confidential situations".
And if you (or Amelia) miss that session, there's a chance to sign up for her Workshop on October 18th on how to get stories into papers - £375 plus VAT will give you all the answers.
29.05.2012 Update: Alison Levitt for the DPP has decided Amelia will face no charges:
Between 4 April 2011 and 18 August 2011, Ms. Hill wrote ten articles which were published in The Guardian. I am satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to establish that these articles contained confidential information derived from Operation Weeting, including the names of those who had been arrested. I am also satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to establish that the police officer disclosed that information to Ms Hill.....
So far as Ms Hill is concerned, the public interest served by her alleged conduct was that she was working with other journalists on a series of articles which, taken together, were capable of disclosing the commission of criminal offences, were intended to hold others to account, including the Metropolitan Police Service and the Crown Prosecution Service, and were capable of raising and contributing to an important matter of public debate, namely the nature and extent of the influence of the media. The alleged overall criminality is the breach of the Data Protection Act, but, as already noted, any damage caused by Ms. Hill's alleged disclosure was minimal. In the circumstances, I have decided that in her case, the public interest outweighs the overall criminality alleged.
This week it was revealed that she was interviewed under caution (not arrested) by officers from Operation Weeting. A Guardian spokesman said "We can confirm Amelia Hill has been questioned in connection with an investigation into alleged leaks. On a broader point, journalists would no doubt be concerned if the police sought to criminalise conversations between off-record sources and reporters.” Last month a 51-year-old detective was arrested and suspended by the Met.
Here's one of Amelia's tweets from April.
Amelia's due to speak at the International Press Institute's World Congress in Taipei at the end of the month, explaining how she gets "inside access to normally confidential situations".
And if you (or Amelia) miss that session, there's a chance to sign up for her Workshop on October 18th on how to get stories into papers - £375 plus VAT will give you all the answers.
29.05.2012 Update: Alison Levitt for the DPP has decided Amelia will face no charges:
Between 4 April 2011 and 18 August 2011, Ms. Hill wrote ten articles which were published in The Guardian. I am satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to establish that these articles contained confidential information derived from Operation Weeting, including the names of those who had been arrested. I am also satisfied that there is sufficient evidence to establish that the police officer disclosed that information to Ms Hill.....
So far as Ms Hill is concerned, the public interest served by her alleged conduct was that she was working with other journalists on a series of articles which, taken together, were capable of disclosing the commission of criminal offences, were intended to hold others to account, including the Metropolitan Police Service and the Crown Prosecution Service, and were capable of raising and contributing to an important matter of public debate, namely the nature and extent of the influence of the media. The alleged overall criminality is the breach of the Data Protection Act, but, as already noted, any damage caused by Ms. Hill's alleged disclosure was minimal. In the circumstances, I have decided that in her case, the public interest outweighs the overall criminality alleged.
Say You, Not Me
Lionel Richie, who, by my guess, would have been the headline act, has pulled out of the Radio 2 Hyde Park "festival" because of illness. Tickets, which cost £35.85 online, seem to be available, though pre-booked picnic hampers, at £64.50 are sold out. There are also VIP packages at £289 per person plus VAT. I wonder how the finances of this event work. "Heavy rain shower" with a maximum of 18C is the BBC Weather forecast for Sunday for the Hyde Park postcode.
- 1000am Friday update. Gary Barlow steps into the Richie gap.
A bit of a do
His warm-up is called "Showcase of Creative Industries". It's not clear if this a video (the DQF thing ?) or a collection of turns - maybe some onstage live post-production with a comedy edge. Let's hope they're getting paid.
Sponsors of the event spookily include Steria, who provide financial services to the BBC under a ten year contract running to 2017, costing the Beeb between £15 and £18m a year. The event is also supported by United Utilities, who have the water monopoly for the North West, Salford University (tax-payer funded) and RBS (government share-holding 84%).
Through the MediaCityUK window
CBBC started from MediaCityUK on Monday this week, but it's taken me a while to realise they've got a "view" of a non-Peel building out of their continuity set "window". (Presumably they could have painted a picture of Salford Quays out of the window when they were in London - that might have been cheaper than the move.)
For lovers of trigonometry, the Beetham Tower, in Deansgate, is 168.87m high, and is 3.2 kilometres away from MediaCityUK. I've no idea whether or not you can see the real Tower directly from any of the real windows in Bridge House.
For lovers of trigonometry, the Beetham Tower, in Deansgate, is 168.87m high, and is 3.2 kilometres away from MediaCityUK. I've no idea whether or not you can see the real Tower directly from any of the real windows in Bridge House.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Back to nature
The BBC HR team hasn't let us down with the detailed job specification for the next Controller BBC Radio 1 and 1Xtra, stepping into the shoes vacated by Andy Parfitt. Here's my favourite bits - you will find your own.
Once you've finished naturing original talent, these are your key imperatives, inexplicably in inverted commas.
Once you've finished naturing original talent, these are your key imperatives, inexplicably in inverted commas.
Raoul Simons
Raoul Simons, 35, was, until at least 2010, deputy football editor of The Times. He graduated from Leeds University in around 1997, with a degree in History and Politics. He features in their records as an "outstanding alumnus", because of his arrival at the London Evening Standard as sports editor.
In 2009 he joined The Times. In September 2010, the New York Times made public an audio tape, edited, which they said was in the hands of Scotland Yard, featuring Glenn Mulcaire, private investigator, instructing someone, believed to be Raoul while he was at the Standard, in the mechanics of listening in to phone messages to former PFA chairman Gordon Taylor. (Go to the left hand side of the link, under multimedia).
Raoul was arrested this morning, not by appointment, by officers from Operation Weeting. He was released on bail.
In 2009 he joined The Times. In September 2010, the New York Times made public an audio tape, edited, which they said was in the hands of Scotland Yard, featuring Glenn Mulcaire, private investigator, instructing someone, believed to be Raoul while he was at the Standard, in the mechanics of listening in to phone messages to former PFA chairman Gordon Taylor. (Go to the left hand side of the link, under multimedia).
Raoul was arrested this morning, not by appointment, by officers from Operation Weeting. He was released on bail.
Story time
The Guardian says BBC managers are being briefed on "how to tell the DQF story". Many of those managers would like to know what the story is before being given acting tips. For most, it's detail-lite or detail-lacking - and we all thought it had been done and dusted before the summer holidays. Now there are stories of double-counting by the various workstreams, and much sherpa re-configuration work before the options are formally signed off by the Executive next Thursday.
Then, of course, the Trustees don't want to be seen to be "bounced" into agreeing it all. So they might want more than one meeting beyond their scheduled session on 22nd September. And it's possible they'll take some of the options to a wider consultation.
Overall, this has been an enormously painful and poorly-mapped out process for staff, who've not relished the alleged "involvement" and don't recognise many of the rumoured outcomes as their own. Most are crying out for some common-sense leadership and decision-making. They might have to wait until Lord Patten chooses the next DG.
Then, of course, the Trustees don't want to be seen to be "bounced" into agreeing it all. So they might want more than one meeting beyond their scheduled session on 22nd September. And it's possible they'll take some of the options to a wider consultation.
Overall, this has been an enormously painful and poorly-mapped out process for staff, who've not relished the alleged "involvement" and don't recognise many of the rumoured outcomes as their own. Most are crying out for some common-sense leadership and decision-making. They might have to wait until Lord Patten chooses the next DG.
Go figure
Dominic Ponsford in the Press Gazette has figures which apparently show that BBC News Online is still substantially ahead of the Mail Online, in terms of UK users. Last month, a different set of figures suggested the Mail was well ahead worldwide, but Mr Ponsford says his stats (from Nielsen/UKOM) are more detailed and more reliable.
The figures are based on a survey of 50,000 people accessing the internet from office and work computers across the UK; Mr Ponsford says they provide a "much more comprehensive picture than ABC". The July figures give BBC News just under 10m unique UK readers in July - with the Mail on 6.6m. Here's the full Nielsen/UKOM top ten for July.
1 BBC News 9,992
2 MailOnline 6,645
3 Guardian.co.uk 4,622
4 Telegraph 4,394
5 Yahoo! News Websites 4,097
6 The Sun 2,916
7 Newsquest Media Group 2,877
8 Trinity Mirror Nationals 2,427
9 MSN News & Weather 2,093
10 The Independent 1,693
The figures are based on a survey of 50,000 people accessing the internet from office and work computers across the UK; Mr Ponsford says they provide a "much more comprehensive picture than ABC". The July figures give BBC News just under 10m unique UK readers in July - with the Mail on 6.6m. Here's the full Nielsen/UKOM top ten for July.
1 BBC News 9,992
2 MailOnline 6,645
3 Guardian.co.uk 4,622
4 Telegraph 4,394
5 Yahoo! News Websites 4,097
6 The Sun 2,916
7 Newsquest Media Group 2,877
8 Trinity Mirror Nationals 2,427
9 MSN News & Weather 2,093
10 The Independent 1,693
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
Lovely
Sometimes real news breaks out. My "old mans' pub" drinks at lunchtime in London W1 were disturbed by a younger, noisier crowd. It turned out that they had all been made redundant that morning from one of the photographic/makeover studios that have proliferated in recent years along Great Portland Street and Great Titchfield Street. They were being paid for their work to date, but no more.
When I say younger, there was one familiar, slightly older face. A woman my generation knows as "The Lovely Aimi MacDonald" was there, as she had been doing some work for the company. Though she'd paid her dues in West End Musicals, she first came to tv attention in "At Last The 1948 Show" in 1967, a programme widely seen as a precursor to Monty Python's Flying Circus. It was produced for ITV by David Frost, and starred Marty Feldman, John Cleese, Graham Chapman and Tim Brooke-Taylor.
If Wikipedia is to be believed, Aimi is now 69. She looks considerably younger than that.
When I say younger, there was one familiar, slightly older face. A woman my generation knows as "The Lovely Aimi MacDonald" was there, as she had been doing some work for the company. Though she'd paid her dues in West End Musicals, she first came to tv attention in "At Last The 1948 Show" in 1967, a programme widely seen as a precursor to Monty Python's Flying Circus. It was produced for ITV by David Frost, and starred Marty Feldman, John Cleese, Graham Chapman and Tim Brooke-Taylor.
Welcome to Wales
Some quotes from Rhodri Talfan Davies, new Director BBC Wales Cymru, given to Wales Online. (You may need one of those BBC cliche bingo cards)
“If we’re going to protect quality then there are inevitably going to be some programmes which we think are wonderfully made, wonderfully produced, enjoyed by the audience, which we may not be able to sustain going forward"
"The BBC’s national mission is I think pretty clear. It’s about helping audiences make sense of Wales, it’s about lifting the lid on Wales, it’s about reflecting the political, social, cultural diversity of Wales. You have to take a view that there are some things that we do that are frankly, at the end of the day, more important than others.”
“I don’t think there is necessarily a direct correlation between the quantity of the output and the impact you can have with audiences. The current funding dilemma we’re facing will make that even tougher, and inevitably I suspect we’ll see an erosion in the overall hours we can produce. But I’m pretty ambitious and I still think that, even with that reduced funding, we can really make our mark.”
On living in Bristol...
"Clearly it wasn’t ideal that my family home was in Bristol, but certainly I’ve given assurances that I would be based in Cardiff throughout the week. Mark [Thompson, BBC DG] I suspect thought long and hard about that. He came to the view in the end that that situation wouldn’t impact on my ability to do the job and I’m very grateful for the support he’s shown."
“If we’re going to protect quality then there are inevitably going to be some programmes which we think are wonderfully made, wonderfully produced, enjoyed by the audience, which we may not be able to sustain going forward"
"The BBC’s national mission is I think pretty clear. It’s about helping audiences make sense of Wales, it’s about lifting the lid on Wales, it’s about reflecting the political, social, cultural diversity of Wales. You have to take a view that there are some things that we do that are frankly, at the end of the day, more important than others.”
“I don’t think there is necessarily a direct correlation between the quantity of the output and the impact you can have with audiences. The current funding dilemma we’re facing will make that even tougher, and inevitably I suspect we’ll see an erosion in the overall hours we can produce. But I’m pretty ambitious and I still think that, even with that reduced funding, we can really make our mark.”
On living in Bristol...
"Clearly it wasn’t ideal that my family home was in Bristol, but certainly I’ve given assurances that I would be based in Cardiff throughout the week. Mark [Thompson, BBC DG] I suspect thought long and hard about that. He came to the view in the end that that situation wouldn’t impact on my ability to do the job and I’m very grateful for the support he’s shown."
Riddled with self-doubt
Matt Frei pours out his heart to the Press Gazette on his move from Auntie to Channel 4 News.
“The BBC is mother and it’s been a very good mother to me but now and again it’s a good idea to leave mother and elope with a mistress."
“I’ve always admired Channel 4 because it’s a cross between current affairs and news. Newsnight with a bit more of a newsy edge at a decent hour. I’ve had my eye on it for some time, and I guess they may have had their eye on me for some time.”
“The BBC is mother and it’s been a very good mother to me but now and again it’s a good idea to leave mother and elope with a mistress."
“I’ve always admired Channel 4 because it’s a cross between current affairs and news. Newsnight with a bit more of a newsy edge at a decent hour. I’ve had my eye on it for some time, and I guess they may have had their eye on me for some time.”
August is a wicked month
Here's a monthly chart for the dog days of August, tracking our hero Piers Morgan in the heady world of US cable chat shows....
Monday, September 5, 2011
Fortress sale
The announcement from News International that it intends to sell the old Fortress Wapping site is another kick in the teeth for Little Jimmy Murdoch (I wonder who his godparents are ?); and must put a question-mark over
Amanda Levete's scheme for the core building, which won planning permission in 2009.
The spin is that the decant of staff which had been going on in readiness for the redevelopment will continue because the "temporary" accommodation in Land Securities' Thomas More Square development "provides the company with excellent facilities and flexibility".
Amanda Levete's scheme for the core building, which won planning permission in 2009.The spin is that the decant of staff which had been going on in readiness for the redevelopment will continue because the "temporary" accommodation in Land Securities' Thomas More Square development "provides the company with excellent facilities and flexibility".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
