The Brief – Monday 1 December – Ofcom on the BBC, disabled underrepresentation in media industry and Swedish publishers v Meta

📺 Ofcom has released its annual report on the BBC, finding that despite funding pressures and a changing media landscape, the BBC remains popular with audiences (83% of UK adults use its services weekly), with high levels of overall audience satisfaction (60%). However, it again warned that the BBC must “take a firmer grip and act swiftly and transparently” to address recent controversies around its news and current affairs output. (Ofcom)

♿ A separate report from Ofcom found that disabled people continue to be “woefully underrepresented” across the TV and radio industries, accounting for 12% of TV employees and 9% of radio employees in 2025, despite the working population average of 18%. The regulator also found that, based on limited socio-economic data, only 27% of employees are from a working-class background, compared to a UK benchmark of 39%. (Ofcom)

⚖️ A group of Swedish publishers, including its three public broadcasters and national newspaper and magazines associations, filed a police complaint against Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg over scam Facebook ads that pretend to be authored by trusted journalists at their outlets. (Press Gazette)

📝 A survey of over 1,000 UK journalists found that, as of last year, a majority (56%) use AI professionally at least weekly, though a similar number (62%) view AI as a threat to journalism, compared to just 15% who view it as an opportunity. (Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism)