From Twitter...
Ben Kelly: Speaking of a nationalised Netflix, the BBC has a vast archive of quality programming, from drama to documentary, that could rival Netflix. Yet they totally waste it. If you reply to this to tell me that iPlayer exists you’ve missed the point. Does iPlayer have all BBC sitcoms on it? Can I watch all of Attenborough’s docs?Vijay Chopra: No, the best of it is usually to be found, guess where? Netflix! From Sherlock to Yes Minister, Netflix seems to have bought the streaming rights.Ben Cobley: Maybe they don't showcase it because it would highlight how dumbed-down the new stuff they're broadcasting is. A lot of contemporary people would not appear in a good light.
Even if the BBC wasn't so extremely biased and in love with political correctness, I think the funding model would still be in serious doubt as we go forward. In the early 1950s it probably had a viewer-listenership of 90% of the audience. It's now more like 15% I would guess, taking in to account other screen/listening time.
ReplyDeleteI would favour moving to a voluntary (opt out) subscription model (with a direct subsidy from general taxation to allow it to remain ad-free and also continue to provide regional programming) but with a revamp of rules on hiring, programme content and so on. It should of course be slimmed down. Its bloated management structure needs to be completely cut back. At a guess I would think you could produce the same service with half the people. And yes, if as part of the subscription they offered a quality archive channel (and radio station - Radio 4 Extra is hardly top notch in terms of quality)I see no reason why people wouldn't stick with it.
I think it might be higher than that because there's a lot of BBC about and most people probably listen or view something, though I suspect much less than they used to. That's certainly true of me. More often than not, I switch off whatever I've switched on and increasingly, I avoid even switching on. I used to be an avid watcher of Newsnight, for example and now I never watch it. And I avoid the television news and most Radio 4 news programmes like World at One, PM or The World Tonight. Radio 4 was my main station. I even used to listen to The Archers as well as features, plays, books, poetry and comedy programmes and now I mostly don't. It's not because it's dull or traditional; it's because it is annoying in a number of ways.
DeleteTo cut down the BBC you'd have to cut the money. Nothing else will do it. It does need to be cut drastically. There is far too much of it. I have a list of UK FM frequencies and they're not all BBC but...
https://media.info/uk/radio/data/platforms/fm
Yes they do have a vast archive. They've even got a programme called Archive on 4. I don't listen to it because I've got out of the habit of listening to most things on Radio 4 - just as I'm thinking maybe I should try it, I see from the programme notes the latest episode was about a lynching of an American boy in the 1960s. A terrible thing but how very Radio 4 of the present time.
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