Destroy the BBC!

[Seeker]

Originally Posted by Bibio

sometimes wish that there were more people like you but less biased.

I am biased. I am biased against hypocritical politicians who set rules and consider themselves above following them. Politicians that give jobs to their friends and try and hide it. Politicians that allow 150,000 people to die because they were slow in locking down a pandemic (twice or three times?) and then blame the public. Politician(s) that can't be bothered to show up at the COBRA meetings. Politicians that put profit before people. Yes, I admit to that bias.

Is it a cognitive bias? Don't think so - I follow left and right wing media outlets and weigh the likely veracity of the stories.

Back to the Beeb - this government loves slogans, "Levelling Up", "Build, Back, Better" and "Global Britain". The BBC is one of the best examples of the UK's "soft power" which Global Britain desperately needs. It is respected worldwide for its news and its programs. We are currently breaking our own negotiated treaties with the EU and threatening to break more - we are becoming untrustworthy as a nation and are running out of feet to shoot. Take away the UK's "face" to the world, the BBC, and what do we have left to show?
This is Conservative Party vengeance on the BBC and nothing more. They weren't happy with the 2019 election coverage and they are not happy with the focus on Boris' parties (and the subsequent coverage of calls for his resignation).

Don't fix the problem (of lying and rule breaking), shoot the messenger is Dorries solution. She knew that announcing this would draw attention away from her leader's woes.

[Ruffy]

Originally Posted by DJ123

To what extent?

To use your words: using fear and wrath to reduce funding if they do not comply.

With many consmer goods advertisers being rather large commercial conglomerates, I'm sure there is sufficient money at stake for one of them to be able to have significant leverage from the threat of cancelling (or just reducing) advertising bookings if messages are not presented in the way they would like.

[Ruffy]

Originally Posted by Seeker

... The BBC is one of the best examples of the UK's "soft power" which Global Britain desperately needs. It is respected worldwide for its news and its programs. We are currently breaking our own negotiated treaties with the EU and threatening to break more - we are becoming untrustworthy as a nation and are running out of feet to shoot. Take away the UK's "face" to the world, the BBC, and what do we have left to show?
This is Conservative Party vengeance on the BBC and nothing more. They weren't happy with the 2019 election coverage and they are not happy with the focus on Boris' parties (and the subsequent coverage of calls for his resignation).
...

I agree about the historical high eputation (that is definitely very much at risk, if not already somewhat sullied).

Ironically there are many who think that the presentation of actions by current Government that could be interpreted as abuses of power are being woefully under reported on the BBC and that the messages being put out are very much toe-ing the line rather than being unbiased as they're supposed to be. That would make it strange for the Conservatives to think it was their 'enemy' (though of course one can see why the examples you cite would induce angst, annoyance or anger amongst them).

[DJ123]

Originally Posted by Ruffy

To use your words: using fear and wrath to reduce funding if they do not comply.

With many consmer goods advertisers being rather large commercial conglomerates, I'm sure there is sufficient money at stake for one of them to be able to have significant leverage from the threat of cancelling (or just reducing) advertising bookings if messages are not presented in the way they would like.

I can't see that being an issue, advertisements are all done through contracts and have guidelines to abide by.
The program content/producers is potentially where the allegiance lies.

[redtrummy]

I much prefer watching programmes without commercial breaks and at present the licence fee equates to 43p a day. That seems pretty good value. Whether I feel the same when David Attenborough finally retires I know not.