Regulators Say Communications Bill Must Protect TV News
The Government’s Communications Bill must defend television news, according to the Independent Television Commission (ITC) and The Broadcasting Standards Commission (BSC).
The New News, Old News study published by the regulatory bodies claims that our news infrastructure risks being “undermined” by the growing assumption that news is something available “free of charge and free of effort”.
The authors of the study confirm the long-term reduction in audiences for television and radio news and current affairs, along with a well-logged decline in the use of newspapers. However, they also claim that television is now the “supreme” news medium, in the sense that it is used and respected by almost everyone.
According to the research, 91% of people say they find television a useful source of news, compared with 73% for newspapers, 59% of radio and 15% for the internet.
Introducing the study, chief executive of the ITC, Patricia Hodgson, argued that “access to trustworthy, informative news can no more be taken for granted than clean air.”
She said: “Television remains one of the few shared experiences across the whole of British society. Yet news is expensive and audiences, with access to more channels and entertainment, have declined.”
She added: “But at the heart of the analysis is the value of broadcast news to our society and political culture, and the importance, though the Communications Bill, of supporting investment, easy access and diverse ownership of broadcast news.”
The report also suggests that broadcasters need to find improved ways of drawing audiences into a broader mix of news. It argues that this should not be left up to the BBC alone, as competition is needed to drive the medium forward.
BSC: 020 7233 0544 www.bsc.org.uk ITC: 0207 306 7743 www.itc.org.uk
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