<p><strong>In the same week that BBC Director General Tim Davie pitched for an increase in government funding for the BBC World Service, while simultaneously axing the global interview programme <em>Hard Talk</em> in another round of cuts, we speak with Gareth Benest, Director of Advocacy at the International Broadcasting Trust. We discuss the decline in international coverage by UK broadcasters, his analysis of the shrinking breadth of countries featured in news and current affairs programming, and the potential impact of new media legislation, algorithms, and public service broadcasting.</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong><em>“Last year, it surprised me that there was, as far as I could see from the logging that I did of linear schedules, there was not a single programme outside of news broadcasts about Rwanda.&nbsp;The most spoken about African country, perhaps in the history of UK media, last year, there wasn't a single documentary. There wasn't a single current affairs programme that actually gave UK citizens an opportunity to understand the country.”</em></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch/view</strong></p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month: </strong><a href="http://www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership</strong></a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Or if you'd rather make a one-off payment (which doesn’t entitle you to the blog) please use our crowdfunding page:</strong></p><p><strong>https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/roger-boltons-beeb-watch-podcast</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>@BeebRoger</strong></p><p><strong>Instagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatch</strong></p><p><strong>LinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch</strong></p><p><strong>email:&nbsp;roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com</strong></p><p><a href="http://www.goodeggproductions.uk" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>www.goodeggproductions.uk</em></strong></a></p> <a target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href="https://open.acast.com/public/patreon/fanSubscribe/9438915">Get bonus content on Patreon</a><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch

Good Egg Productions

Gareth Benest, International Broadcasting Trust, on shrinking global coverage

OCT 17, 202429 MIN
Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch

Gareth Benest, International Broadcasting Trust, on shrinking global coverage

OCT 17, 202429 MIN

Description

<p><strong>In the same week that BBC Director General Tim Davie pitched for an increase in government funding for the BBC World Service, while simultaneously axing the global interview programme <em>Hard Talk</em> in another round of cuts, we speak with Gareth Benest, Director of Advocacy at the International Broadcasting Trust. We discuss the decline in international coverage by UK broadcasters, his analysis of the shrinking breadth of countries featured in news and current affairs programming, and the potential impact of new media legislation, algorithms, and public service broadcasting.</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong><em>“Last year, it surprised me that there was, as far as I could see from the logging that I did of linear schedules, there was not a single programme outside of news broadcasts about Rwanda.&nbsp;The most spoken about African country, perhaps in the history of UK media, last year, there wasn't a single documentary. There wasn't a single current affairs programme that actually gave UK citizens an opportunity to understand the country.”</em></strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch/view</strong></p><p><strong>&nbsp;</strong></p><p><strong>To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month: </strong><a href="http://www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong>www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership</strong></a></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>Or if you'd rather make a one-off payment (which doesn’t entitle you to the blog) please use our crowdfunding page:</strong></p><p><strong>https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/roger-boltons-beeb-watch-podcast</strong></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><strong>@BeebRoger</strong></p><p><strong>Instagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatch</strong></p><p><strong>LinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch</strong></p><p><strong>email:&nbsp;[email protected]</strong></p><p><a href="http://www.goodeggproductions.uk" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><strong><em>www.goodeggproductions.uk</em></strong></a></p> <a target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href="https://open.acast.com/public/patreon/fanSubscribe/9438915">Get bonus content on Patreon</a><br /><hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>