Category: News

  • Local News

    This morning, the BBC Trust rejected plans for a local BBC video news service. Concurrently, Ofcom published the results of its Market Impact Assessment and concluded that the plans would have had a significant negative impact on commercial news providers. The BBC proposal would have seen it producing more localised news which would be delivered…

  • Future of Public Service Broadcasting

    With Ofcom’s review underway, and with the usual calls for the BBC’s cash to be spread a bit thinner, with “top-slicing” and the like, commentators are often keen for the UK to adopt a model similar to public television in the US. There, cash is raised by subscribers pledging money directly. Relatively little state and…

  • Chinese Earthquake and the Media

    Last night I was flicking around the outer reaches of Sky, and came upon CCTV just as the top of the hour was approaching. So I decided to see how the awful Chinese earthquake was being reported in south western China on the English language version of the Chinese state TV service. Well of course…

  • When Urban Myths Are Reported As News

    I was disappointed recently, when watching the Ewan McGregor/Charlie Boorman series Long Way Down, that they reinforced the nonsense about water going down the plug clockwise or anti-clockwise depending on whether you’re in the northern or southern hemisphere. Along the border, there’s a few quid to be made perpetuating this party trick to unwitting tourists.…

  • BBC iPlayer Now Streaming

    The Beeb has updated the iPlayer to incorporate Flash streaming versions of programmes as well as the Windows XP only downloads previously available. This makes programme watching available to Mac and Linux users which is good news. It also means that I can link to a programme like last nights Can Gerry Robinson Fix The…

  • The Cotton Fields of Uzbekistan

    There was a great film on Newsnight last night highlighting the child labour abuse in Uzbekistan where during the autumn the schools all close and children are sent off to pick the cotton. They don’t have any choice in the matter, and they sleep away from their homes. This cotton is then sold by the…

  • Disappearing Children

    Over the weekend, during the start of the Premier League we saw pitchside advertising, and yellow bracelets in rememberance of Madeleine McCann. News coverage was also ongoing, marking 100 days of her disappearance. Now I won’t talk about her particular case any more because I have no real knowledge of it. But it does seem…

  • Alan Johnston Released

    Such wonderful news.

  • Alan Johnston – 100 Days

    Alan Johnston has now been held in captivity for 100 days.

  • IoS

    I didn’t pick up a copy, but it seems that The Independent on Sunday’s readers aren’t overjoyed at the changes that were made over the weekend…

  • Alan Johnston Video Released

    http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/6710863.stm

  • Mobile News

    I’m on the move, and I want to catch a news bulletin. What should I do? From today, if I want to, I can subscribe to ITN’s Newsfix on my mobile phone for £2 a week. Or maybe I’d prefer to watch the BBC’s free stream of News 24. What would you do? (OK –…