Napoli or milano ?

Anyone smell salami being sliced ?  Ever since the leak of the original strategy review, Putting Quality First, in February 2010, the language of BBC Executives has been that piecemeal cuts applied evenly across divisions are now officially BAD.  But the "testing of the water" that has gone on since then has, bit by bit, pushed us back to the reality that the organisation that will have to deliver all its current services for less money.

First out and saved was 6Music; then the Asian Network; BBC local radio and 5Live will not now merge; Zai Bennett avers that BBC3 is safe; Mark Thompson says regional tv news for Oxford, Cambridge and the Channel Islands is safe; a Helen Boaden briefing (apparently to newsgatherers, who are supposed to be good at reporting) leads to stories of 1,500 jobs to go in "News" (from a total of either 9,000 or 8,000 depending on who you believe) - then the story is squashed; the Myers report on radio music networks reveals a generous level of sub-cutaneous fat in their operation, suggesting major liposuction can be carried out without any risk to the patient; the BBC Trust heads to Wales today, probably with words of re-assurance.

Now strategist John Tate is "socialising" a gentle refocusing of the remit of channels and services, that will pave the way for the traditional salami slicing. Inevitable. The alternative would involve Mark Thompson and Jeremy Hunt saying they got the maths wrong when they rushed through the six-year licence fee deal - and neither fancies that on their record.