The BBC has announced changes in its editorial policy largely in response to questions raised by the Hutton report. There’s also been a plethora of other material going public this week that raises a number of related issues.
However the corporation continues sustain criticism from outsiders. The issue of Israel and Palestine, for instance, brings out enormous polarisation of opinion.
Tom Gross argued earlier this week that the BBC looks critically at Israeli government actions, to the exclusion of depth coverage of the words and actions of Palestinian leaders and activists. He argues too that it should keep in focus qualitative differences in governance within the Israeli state and that of the wider Arab world. This interview with the BBC’s Middle East ‘ombudsman’ Malcolm Balen in the liberal Ha’aretz newspaper reflects some of these concerns.
Meanwhile the Media Group at the University of Glasgow, took the opportunity to re-launch Bad News from Israel, a depth study of news broadcast coverage of the issue. Contrary to Gross’s findings they found a persistent reliance on Israeli official sources, and a consequent bias towards Israeli views. They also note that British audiences have developed an events view of what is happening there with little understanding of the underling issues; a surfit of whats and hows with very few whys.
What both critiques have in common is the call for more context. However in interview on Monday morning the BBC’s John Simpson expressed the fear that in pushing too deeply into issues journalists may themselves get caught up in the argument.
But perhaps space for context, with all its conflicting and competing claims to truth, cannot be found within the older broadcast media. Nigel Chapman, acting Director of the BBC World Service, writing in the FT yesterday argued that the promotion of conversation (subs may be needed) through the internet and other new media is the way forward:
“All over the world the story is heading in the same direction, if at different speeds. People want a dialogue, not a monologue. They want their opinions to be heard, and their culture respected and understood. Even if they never call a radio station or send an e-mail, they expect their community’s views to be reflected on air and online”.
That’s a tall order for such a large media player with a presence over many platforms and cultures. The suspicion is that it will take more than investment in technology. A new approach that both works with and against audiences may be needed. A combination, perhaps, of recruiting its own brand of Gonzo journalists and the opening of new common spaces where conflicts can be aired often and thoroughly.
Mick is founding editor of Slugger. He has written papers on the impacts of the Internet on politics and the wider media and is a regular guest and speaking events across Ireland, the UK and Europe. Twitter: @MickFealty
Discover more from Slugger O'Toole
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
