Tuesday, December 24, 2019

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I'm increasingly worried that the Ofcom Content Board is just a chat-fest for former broadcasters no longer active. Take these minutes from their October meeting, discussing the-about-to-be published review of BBC News and Current Affairs - the second part reads like a note of a conversation largely free from evidence.

15. Members were updated on the progress of Ofcom’s review of BBC news and current affairs, on the emerging research findings and recommendations to the BBC. The Executive was confident in the
robustness of the review’s methodology. The recommendations were that the BBC continue to focus on accuracy to build trust among its whole audience; to be bolder in its approach to delivering due impartiality; to better reflect the diversity of the UK with authentic content that was relevant and
engaging to everyone; and the need to do more to stand out online. The Content Board agreed that these were the right areas.

16. In discussion members commented that when news bulletins sought to appeal to a wider audience there was a sometimes a tendency to include entertainment-related stories; that the BBC was a trusted source and sometimes was itself the subject of news stories; rather than a flexible approach to due impartiality, a less mechanistic approach was suggested; and that attitudes towards the BBC could vary in different parts of the UK. Other matters discussed included attitudes to radio news; audience
perceptions of current affairs and understanding of what it meant; and how the BBC was likely to react to the review when published later in the month, on the same day as Ofcom’s BBC Annual Report and Performance Report.

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