Dozing spires

The line-up for Oxford Media Convention, coming up on 8th March, isn't quite as zingy as last year.

Indeed, a number of speakers are approaching their media sell-by dates. The booking of John Whittingdale MP is hardly a coup; in a matter of months, Baroness Dido Harding will no longer be part of Talk Talk; Nick Denton, formerly of Gawker Media, is concentrating on whether he wants to be bankrupt or not;  Jane Martinson, media supremo of The Guardian, can perhaps explains how her parent group intends to break even by 2018/19; and Rona Fairhead, the only BBC name in the speaker-line-up, has a matter of weeks to run as Chair of the BBC Trust. (She's also saying bye-bye to her HSBC non-executive role - £524k for the most recent year.)

Sharon White of Ofcom is perhaps the star guest - but even she won't be ready to tell us how Ofcom will judge distinctiveness at the BBC; consultation, consultation, etc.