The Information Transparency Problem in Europe
It is official, I am frustrated. I have met enough roadblocks in the past few months related to my graduate research project to now officially declare that I perceive a serious information transparency problem in Europe.
Allow me to first admit that, as a U.S.-trained lawyer, I have perhaps become [...]
Tories Call For BBC To Be Brought Under Ofcom
With the Hutton Report providing them no real political ammunition the Conservatives have had to make do with repeating their calls for the BBC to be brought under Ofcom. A CCO press release states:
“In the aftermath of the Hutton Report and top level resignations at the BBC, [...]
Post-Hutton: So What�s Ofcom Asking People About PSB?
Ofcom�s PSB review is important. The Hutton Report makes it more so.
Obviously the review will cast its net wider than the BBC but it will undoubtedly impact and reverberate most significantly within that organisation. Charter Renewal is around the corner.
A key component to the review will be the [...]
The BBC: Summing-up the past few days
The apologies, walk-outs and resignations over the past few days remind me of the great Robert Evans quote from the Kid Stays in the Picture: “There are three sides to every story. My side, your side, and the truth. And no one is lying.”
Apart from the already well-publicised and [...]
Acting Director General Appointed
The BBC Governors have appointed Mark Byford Acting Director General.
Hutton Report Will Feed Into Charter Renewal
Culture secretary Tessa Jowell has confirmed that Lord Hutton’s damning report will feed into the corporation’s charter review process.
“Lord Hutton’s conclusions will be taken into account as part of the charter review,” said Ms Jowell, announcing her acceptance of the resignation of BBC chairman Gavyn Davies.
“The BBC charter [...]
Dyke Resigns
BBC director general Greg Dyke has resigned from the corporation in wake of the Hutton Report.
I Spent Some Time At Ofcom Yesterday…
Lots of change since I last went to Riverside House in the summer of 2003. At that point there were only a handful of people on one floor with builders occupying the rest. Now, it�s a hive of activity and occupied from top to bottom.
Very impressed with how the [...]
Waller Throws A Wobbly
The Times’ Martin Waller seems all miffed. In tomorrow’s Times he writes:
“DOES the new media regulator know anything at all about how the media works? Apparently not, because this paper rang Ofcom on Tuesday night to ask if it was true that Luke Johnson was to be the new chairman of Channel [...]
Davies Falls On The Sword
LONDON (Reuters) – The chairman of the BBC – Gavyn Davies – has resigned and the broadcaster has apologised for some of its reporting after the Hutton inquiry lambasted the corporation.
Hutton Heaps Blame On BBC
Reuters reports:
Lord Hutton’s inquiry into the death of Iraq weapons expert David Kelly has lambasted the BBC.
The report by Hutton singled out journalist Andrew Gilligan, the BBC’s management and its supervisory board of governors, saying a radio report that the government “sexed up” intelligence in a dossier on Iraqi weapons programmes [...]
C4 Chair: Johnson Gets It Not Hughes
Ofcomwatch – like others – reported at the weekend that Penny Hughes would be the new Channel 4 chair. So it was a surprise when Luke Johnson was named the channel’s new chairman this morning.
The choice was all the more surprising since Johnson’s name hadn’t been touted as [...]
Pop Quiz: which entity?…
* Is now (as of January 21st) the largest shareholder in Murdoch’s News Corporation (based on a transaction that was widely viewed as hostile to Murdoch’s interests);
* Owns 50% of Discovery Communications (Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, etc., and the distributor of BBC America);
* Owns QVC, which topped Amazon.com in [...]
PSB Seminar Timetable Announced
Ofcom today announced a series of six public research seminars in locations around the UK as part of its comprehensive 12 month review of public service broadcasting.
The events will take place in:
Leeds – 29 January
Norwich – 5 February
Belfast – 11 February
Plymouth – 17 February
Swansea – 19 February
Glasgow – 24 February
CQT Accuse Ofcom Over ITV News
Guardian reports:
Ofcom has been accused of “fiddling while Rome burns” over its refusal to take action over proposed changes to ITV’s national and regional news, amid fears that the broadcaster’s newly merged owner will seek a further �100m in cuts next year.
The new communications regulator, which officially launched on [...]
Ofcom Review ITV Licence Terms
Ofcom, which decides how much broadcasters pay for their ITV licences, said today it wanted to streamline the process for reviewing the financial terms of licences and proposed that all 16 ITV licences come up for review at the same time.
The licences expire at different dates between 2008 and 2011 and [...]
New Channel 4 Chair
Sunday Times reports:
Tessa Jowell will announce tomorrow that Penny Hughes, a former Coca-Cola executive, is the new chairwoman of Channel 4. The decision was taken on Friday after Jowell received the recommendation from the communications watchdog Ofcom.
Hughes, who will replace Vanni Treves, has seen off Hans Snook, the Orange founder, Stuart [...]
Ofcom Scalps Its First Pirate
Ofcom has sent a shot across the bows of pirate radio operators by successfully bringing its first prosecution.
Cecil Morris, seemingly dubbed by the mainstream media – “the prime mover” – behind Birmingham-based People’s Community Radio Link (PCRL), recieved a three year suspended jail sentence, was fined �3,000 and ordered to pay [...]
Geoff Stafford’s Comments on the BBC Charter Review
Geoff Stafford says:
A modern �300 PC is capable of editing video and audio to ‘broadcast standard’ (though who really cares about that anyway?). With software such as Adobe Premiere. There are digital camcorders for about the same price, even Hi8 (which the BBC was using ten years ago [...]
WiMax is Coming Soon!
WiMax is the acronym for IEEE Standard 802.16. It is a wireless product designed to use the 10-to-66-GHz frequency bands. For this reason, its antenas require line-of-sight with other antennas. So it is a product used to interconnect buildings and towers rather than for indoor-type applications. It can, [...]
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