case study

case study

The problem with the BBC is not that it is independent and objective . The problem precisely is that it is neither . It is not independent : it depends on the government for its budget and it 's hardly objective , as no human can possibly be . The lack of objectivity would not be such a problem were it not for the BBC 's maddenly condescending self-marketing as the "broader view . The BBC is merely one view among many and not by definition better , higher , or more informed . It 's just one view

, that 's it

And it 's not an independent view . Though many won 't like the comparison , the fact is that Murdoch 's media empire is leagues more independent than anything the BBC can dream of . Murdoch doesn 't have a charter that needs to be reviewed every few years , he doesn 't depend on someone else for his revenues , his management isn 't hired by the government

I can see no way that the BBC is independent and as the Hutton Inquiry made clear , as long as the BBC remains an arm of the government it can expect to get involved in damaging political tussles because it was given birth through the political process

However , the BBC acts and markets itself as somehow above the human fray , an unblinking eye that "Takes the Broader View " and sees into the heart of situations

I enjoy watching the BBC : it 's one of the first things I turn on When I 'm at home I watch its internet streams . Nonetheless , it is not a revelation from God , infallible in its awesome majesty . It 's just another broadcaster , one with as much objectivity as Fox News , CBS , the CBC , the Australian Broadcasting Corporation , or any other large media outlet

As for its independence , might I suggest if you don 't actually earn your money but in fact get your budget from the government , you are by definition , dependent . In this respect , the BBC is in a league far more amateur than the real pros : private media companies . I mean , could the Hutton Inquiry have involved any media company other than the BBC ? Of course not

So please , stop beating a dead horse . Once the BBC 's budget isn 't a line in someone else 's budget and is actually earned through its own exertions (and lobbying the government for a higher license fee is not "earning " your money ) then I 'll put it in the same category as legitimately independent private broadcasters

The HYPERLINK "http /www .the-hutton-inquiry .org .uk /content /report /chapter12 .htm " \l "a90 " Hutton Report makes clear that there is a wide disjunct between the BBC 's high appraisal of itself and its reality : shoddy reporting shoddy editing , and bad management . Those are pretty bad verdicts to reach and yet the BBC 's reaction to the Report is far from shame

It should be shame though

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