10/04/2010

The BBC, the Election and Devolution

I have just watched the latest edition of Newswatch, a programme that deals with complaints about the BBC's news coverage. This week's edition, as might be expected, had a section about election coverage.

In the programme the deputy head of the news room, Craig Oliver, the Beeb's man in charge of fair election coverage said something like these people [the party reps] are debating the running of our country. Weather taxes should go up, the Health Service and the Education of our children.

Except for Wales, Scotland and the North of Ireland the Health Service and the Education of our children are not major issues in this election – they are issues for next year's elections to the devolved bodies, because they are devolved issues.

If the man who is charged with fair election coverage isn't aware of the devolution differences which should be noted in the coverage of this election, what real hope is there for fair and impartial reporting from the BBC?

6 comments:

  1. Reminds me of a point John Dixon made. (Modern) British structures don't automatically ignore Wales (or Scotland), they're just extremely likely to because the vast bulk of the people they serve simply do not live in Wales. It's logic.

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  2. They are taxing the weather?

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  3. They are taxing the weather?

    They are - when you get your wind, rain and sun tax bills remember that you were warned about them here.

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  4. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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  5. Sabrina,

    My e-mail address is on this site, if you want me to promote your prize in a blog, please send me an e-mail explaining why it might be relevant to my site. Please do not spam my blog. It pisses me off and it pisses my readers off!

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