Can we trust the BBC?

Inside the BBC

Can we trust the BBC?

As a public service broadcaster, the concept of trust is paramount. From its news coverage to funding and political questions behind the scenes, can we trust the corporation?

If dissensus is the new normal in Britain, we need a new media

Des Freedman 1 July 2016

An inquiry into the future of public service broadcasting in Britain launched its report days after the Brexit vote. It holds important clues to how we deal with the current breakdown of consensus.

Lord Puttnam: the BBC must confront a "total" loss of trust

David Puttnam and Niki Seth-Smith 1 July 2016

The film producer and chair of a major inquiry into the future of public service broadcasting calls on the BBC to help rebuild trust in Brexit Britain.

The BBC and British branding

Claire Westall and Michael Gardiner 27 May 2016

The corporation’s claims to the public and to neutrality are crucial for the British state and its power across the globe.

Decoding the BBC White Paper

Des Freedman 12 May 2016

Apocalyptic rumours followed by a row-back and relief. It's an age-old strategy, but what's the reality behind the government's BBC proposals?

The General Strike to Corbyn: 90 years of BBC establishment bias

Tom Mills 6 May 2016

On the anniversary of the 1926 General Strike, looking back to the early BBC helps us understand the latest bias scandal, over coverage of Labour's anti-semitism scandal vs Tory election fraud.

On the new British 'popular'

Nicholas Mirzoeff 8 April 2016

The fight over the BBC is also a struggle over what it means, in the UK, to be ‘popular’. In other words, who are the people?

Tomorrow’s BBC will be fitted to your personality

Adam Sherwin 21 March 2016

The BBC is doing cutting-edge research into Visual Perceptive Media, virtual reality and facial coding technologies. But do we want our shows to be tailored to our age, gender, and tastes? And what happens to all that data?

‘Red-tape’ is at the heart of the BBC’s democratic remit

Barbara Speed 15 March 2016

The so-called ‘sharing economy’ is composed largely of opaque shoddily managed companies. Rather than mimicking these models, the BBC must make the case for improving and developing its much-lamented bureaucracy.

How is Islam represented on the BBC?

Elizabeth Poole 15 March 2016

While the Corporation’s news coverage tends to reinforce stereotypes, its cultural programming calls these into question.

The British are dangerously ill-informed about the EU referendum

Mike Berry 17 February 2016

Research suggests that the UK media are failing to adequately inform the British public, ahead of the country's referendum on EU membership. The BBC, in particular, has a duty to step up its game.

To the BBC: don’t give airtime to the Taliban’s threats

Aziz Hakimi 7 February 2016

Afghanis inside and outside the country have been angered by the BBC's interview with a Taliban spokesman directly after a suicide attack, in which he announced a new target.

The BBC, Savile and investigations

Meirion Jones 22 January 2016

In a week when the BBC has been hit by yet more scandal as a result of suppressing an investigation into the notorious paedophile Jimmy Savile, we ask: does the BBC need an investigations unit?

Making the news or breaking it: a unique problem for the BBC

Peter Jukes 11 January 2016

The argument over whether the BBC 'orchestrated' the resignation of a Labour shadow minister for political effect is more than it seems.

The BBC's Northern Irish Troubles

Peter Geoghegan 5 January 2016

From its inception as an unabashedly ‘unionist’ organization, the BBC in Belfast has had a problematic history. Has the corporation of today managed to shake off the dilemmas of the past?

The BBC needs a new Scottish channel

Iain MacWhirter 3 December 2015

Why isn't there a digital Scottish channel for the 5 million Scots who speak English? Such a move could start to heal the wounds between Scotland and the BBC.

The good, the bad, and Corbynmania: how to defend the BBC

A.M. Poppy 29 September 2015

Not all defences of the BBC are good. What can the Corbyn insurgency teach us about how to make a progressive case for the corporation?

Imagining the BBC as new

John Sheil 23 September 2015

Despite Armando Iannucci’s skilful defence of the BBC, defending the Corporation as it stands falls into the trap of using the language of austerity.

Panorama, the Corbyn surge and the political establishment

Tom Mills 9 September 2015

This week’s Panorama documentary on Jeremy Corbyn has been criticised for shoddy reporting and overt political bias in favour of the political establishment. This is not an isolated incident.

“Whose side are you on?” Public broadcasters and counter-terrorism

Harry Blain 13 July 2015

When it comes to state surveillance and “terrorism”, there is a long history of political pressure, control and manipulation over the arm of the media entrusted with the explicit mission of serving the public.

Why is the BBC presenting RUSI as objective analysts of the Middle East?

David Wearing 11 June 2015

The ‘Royal United Services Institute’ has close links with the British state and its military establishment. The BBC should not present its analysis as apolitical ‘fact’.

Propaganda or professionalism on Pacific Quay?

John Robertson 6 May 2015

How were political issues covered by BBC Reporting Scotland and STV News in the four months before UK General Election 2015?

The BBC Trust: a work in progress

Jacquie Hughes 24 April 2015

A chorus of critics is calling for the abolition of the BBC Trust. Yes, it may be flawed but this body could yet be reformed to fulfil its public service function.

Scrutinising the Scrutineers: part 3

Julian Petley 21 April 2015

UK media coverage of EU issues is frequently superficial and plagued by basic errors. The BBC, and others, must work to change this.

Scrutinising the Scrutineers: part 2

Julian Petley 14 April 2015

Infuriated by the BBC’s lack of coverage of its work, The European Scrutiny committee is at the centre of a discussion about the ‘limits’ of the corporation's independence.

Scrutinising the Scrutineers: part 1

Julian Petley 14 April 2015

The European Scrutiny Committee has locked horns with the BBC, repeatedly accusing it of a pro-EU bias. Is the corporation’s editorial independence under threat?

The BBC and the arms trade: a silent scandal

Harry Blain 8 April 2015

In its recent appointments to the BBC Trust, the government has deeply associated our public broadcaster with the arms trade. Why aren’t we talking about this?

Beyond our shores: Europhobia and the BBC

Jamie Mackay 25 February 2015

The BBC has been attacked from all sides about its European coverage. How it responds will have consequences far beyond the newsroom.

Less velvet glove, more iron fist

Lis Howell 20 February 2015

The new Chair of the BBC Trust Rona Fairhead has given her first public speech which was widely reviewed. Now the dust has settled – but what did Rona say, and more importantly, what did she really mean?