By
scottlunt on July 10th, 2007
Consider the following:
In 2006, the UK Department of Culture Media and Sport (DCMS) identified two objectives for the future of the BBC:
1) keep pace with technology
2) reconnect the BBC with the citizens
(DCMS, 2006a, p. 2)
The Communications Act of 2003 stated the following purposes:
“the provision of relevant television services which secure that programmes dealing with a wide range of subject-matters are made available for viewing; (264/4/a)the provision of relevant television services in a manner which (having regard to the days on which they are shown and the times of day at which they are shown) is likely to meet the needs and satisfy the interests of as many different audiences as practicable; (264/4/b)that those services (taken together) include what appears to OFCOM to be a sufficient quantity of programmes that reflect the lives and concerns of different communities and cultural interests and traditions within the United Kingdom, and locally in different parts of the United Kingdom; (264/6/i)”
Channel 4’s Mandate (from the Communications Act):
[To provide] a broad range of high quality and diverse programming which, in particular – (a) demonstrates innovation, experiment and creativity in the form and content of programmes; (b) appeals to the tastes and interests of a culturally diverse society†and “(c) exhibits a distinctive character†(264/3/d).
From 2004 BBC’s “Building Public Value”:
Public intervention would ensure that its astonishing creative power – to enrich individuals with knowledge, culture and information about their world, to build more cohesive communities, to engage the people of the UK and the whole globe in a new conversation about who we are and where we are going – would be put to work to the sole benefit of the public (BBC 2004, p 6).
From Ofcom Review 2004:
public service broadcasting is likely to have to use a creative approach which blends public purposes and popularity, which is serious but yet still accessible, and which finds new ways of leading audiences to interesting and challenging material. (p. 12)
Now consider these Internet usage trends:
Young people are spending more time than other age groups engaging with the Internet. Note especially the spike in the young people who have contributed to a website or a blog.
When you add in the concern that Ofcom and BBC leaders have expressed about losing the young audience, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to put these two concepts together: (1) young people are flocking to UGC sites; (2) young people are not flocking to PSBs.
Put them together:
The hearty promises of Ofcom, the BBC, and the DCMS listed above center around expansion of culture (especially community) and experimentation with new technology. One must assume that these promises apply to all age groups, including the 18-24 crowd. Yet, while young users have shown an affinity for user generated content, the PSBs have not. Taking it all in consideration, PSBs are not finding “new ways of leading audiences to interesting and challenging material.” Instead, they are waiting to see what interesting and challenging material will emerge, perhaps so they can follow along later.
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From youtube-ugc-and-psb-final.pdf
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