Wednesday, May 20, 2009

A crisis in television - four British heaveyweights comment

LIVE POST.

It's nearing the end of a 2 day conf on journalism in crisis, and to round off the sessions, comes the key note debate.


BBC TV Director of News Helen Boaden
TV has lost 1.9 percent= 460,00 adults in current affairs =1.1 percent
13.7 percent fell amongst young people

She's asking of the resilience in tv and says its not nearly as bad. Says fmr BBC DG, brill as he was for forging net underestimated audience.

Says audiences consistently choose BBc News. 10,0clock News gets 5 million people each day.

She's now extolling virtues of news and current affairs.

PAUSE. So this post could continue like this of me documenting BBC good practice, but then that's me doing PR. But then you'd not expect Helen Boaden to critique the status quo.

Changing media audiences has a profound affect on journalism, she goes on to say. It's not a crisis about broadcast journalism but about all journalism.

Hopes something positive emerges from the fall out of these changes.
when chips are down people come back to TV journalism e.g. credit crunch, snow.

Simon Bucks talking about how the BBC can give away content for nothing - a clearly unfair situation. Er, this tussle between the two is as old as Cain and Abel.

Says online news model is expanding, so qu about is TV news outdated is missing the point. Simon says surely we should be asking about videojournalism

Says 9 million unique viewers. Up 80 percent =160 million pages.

8 mill people watching TV news means things are not that bad.

Dorothy Byrne, on does journalism have a future?
Yes, is her answer. We're going through tough times. Channel 4 will stay as it is, a public service remit. Now the sell about Channel 4, my old work place.

Talking about some original web ideas. Applauding all the others. Kumbaya moments. Says Current Affairs is being squeezed. Says that's really Sad.

Unreported world
- touting C4s programme.

Robin Elias kicks off with his diversity credentials in getting new ethnic people into the media. How it's changed over the years. Disengagement is a serious business with diverse groups.

TV is coming up with ingenious ways of getting things on the net. He says they must convince broadcasters of their merits. CJs will enhance it, but will not replace journalism.

We're back to Abdul Kawari, 23 years an editor who sends money back to his parents in Somalia, used his background and contacts to get interview with hijackers.

Talking about a shoot by his Yao, a new videojournalists who shoots, edits a voices and nabbed Ben Chapman.

Oh boy hasn't ITN come along way from barring VJs from ITN when I was a starting off as a VJ back in the 90s.