Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch

Michael Delahaye on the BBC’s influence and the struggle for independent journalism after the Soviet era

Michael Delahaye, veteran BBC journalist and author of "After the Fall: The Battle to Save Independent Media in the Post-Soviet World," joins us to share his firsthand experiences supporting independent journalism across Russia and the former Soviet republics. We discuss the challenges faced by journalists in a country without a history of independent journalism, the impact of Putin, the lack of a media market, the role of the West, the significance of the BBC World Service and the ongoing fight for media freedom in increasingly autocratic environments. “I did find, quite surprised me, that a lot of these young journalists thought, “Hold on,” they were saying to me, “But, but look, you know, this is a time of transition. We do have a patriotic duty here, and, you know, we should actually aid the transition. It’s all very fine going attack dogs against authority, but we've got to bear in mind that this is, quote, an emerging democracy. It is fragile.”Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership @beebwatch.bsky.social@BeebRogerInstagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatchLinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watchemail: roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prof Patrick Barwise Unpacks the BBC Green Paper and Trump’s Legal Threat

Patrick Barwise is Emeritus Professor of Management and Marketing at London Business School, former chair of Which, the UK consumer organisation, and co-author of 'The War Against the BBC'.We review the government's newly published green paper on the BBC—covering its governance, funding models, independence, commercial and political influences, public accountability, what's missing and participation in the consultation. And we discuss whether the BBC should settle with Trump. “I would like to see the government literally saying, ‘We will fund that defence.’ I think that this is actually an opportunity for the government to demonstrate that we will not let our main public broadcaster be just sort of bullied in this kind of a way.”Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership @beebwatch.bsky.social@BeebRogerInstagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatchLinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watchemail: roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The British Academy BBC report: time for big changes

Professors Georgina Born and Justin Lewis are co-authors of the British Academy report on the future of the BBC and public service media. From the UK to Scandinavia, Canada to Australia, the report presents evidence about what works and what doesn’t. We discuss some of their findings: the importance of democratic governance, the decline of the licence fee, and the need for independent funding mechanisms.We explore the role of public service media, the threat from global big tech, governance and political independence, alternatives to the licence fee, the idea of a permanent charter, strategies for engaging young audiences, and the need to develop new approaches to public service media in the digital age."The BBC has been built and developed over 100 years. It could be abandoned in one term of one government under our current structure, which I think we would all come to regret if it happened."Find the British Academy report here: https://www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/publications/future-of-public-service-media/Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership @beebwatch.bsky.social@BeebRogerInstagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatchLinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watchemail: roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jon Williams, ex-BBC Foreign News Editor, on Freelance Journalism, Media Challenges, and Lawsuits

Jon Williams, Executive Director of the Rory Peck Trust, former foreign editor at BBC News, and managing editor of ABC News in the US and RTÉ. We discuss the work of the Trust; the challenges facing freelance journalists; the rise in deaths and imprisonment of journalists; dealing with propaganda wars and media companies; and how broadcasters should handle lawsuits.“As news organisations have got less and less money to base foreign correspondents overseas, then more and more they're turning to freelancers to fill that gap, and the awards are … both an act of recognition and an act of resistance to this climate of misinformation that we find ourselves in.”Find out more about the Rory Peck Trust: https://rorypecktrust.org/Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership @beebwatch.bsky.social@BeebRogerInstagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatchLinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watchemail: roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dan Thomas, FT Global Media Editor on the Sky/ITV Deal and the Future of UK Media

Dan Thomas is the global media editor of the Financial Times and its former business editor. We discuss the turbulence shaking up the UK media industry: the high-stakes merger talks between ITV and Sky – what that means for the future of public service broadcasting, the challenges posed by increasing media consolidation and what lies ahead for major players like Channel 4. We also discuss the current leadership crisis at the BBC and the potential impact of the government's long-awaited green paper."Sky buying ITV—you know, the biggest UK commercial public sector broadcaster—is massive. This wouldn’t have been thinkable, really, not so long ago. And it changes the whole public sector broadcasting landscape. It has huge ramifications for what happens to the BBC. It has huge importance for Channel 4."Listen to all our episodes here: https://podfollow.com/beebwatch To support our journalism and receive a weekly blog sign up now for £1.99 per month www.patreon.com/BeebWatch/membership @beebwatch.bsky.social@BeebRogerInstagram: rogerboltonsbeebwatchLinkedIn: Roger Bolton's Beeb Watchemail: roger@rogerboltonsbeebwatch.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.