Reduction in news minutage for ITV News regions

It's a disgrace that no solution has been found for Regional News (and other Commercial PSB funding)... The three main parties have something to answer for in my opinion...

Anyone think that instead of the 'Contract Rights Renewal' agreement ever being lifted, that there could be some kind of CRR Regional News and Programming Rebate instead ( Maybe this could be funded via a levy on Telecom/Cable/Satellite companies as suggested by Professor Patrick Barwise in 2009? Although I've read suggestions about this type of scheme, I missed this myself first time around...it seems a good idea... ) ITV make 'quality' Regional News programmes and limited non-News programming first, then get the costs back ( maybe up to £60m, similar to the amount ITV claim they lose through CRR a year ) the following year. With this type of levy, the funding gap for Channel 4 could be bridged, local TV's studio costs could be paid for, etc etc etc...as a type of tax rebate. Seems better than half arsed programming and potential use of Licence Fee money...

Did everyone get the same item about Saturday Night Takeaway on tour tonight? As I noticed on Calendar the report was very generic not mentioning any specific locations the tour was coming to.

The last story on Calendar tonight was a story about Slade and Christmas songs with Andy Bevan reporting. Not sure what relevance it had to this region besides the fact that their songs are heard at this time of year across the country. Presumably a report originally aired on Central News.

Tyne Tees had the Xmas song piece as well. Been a few non-local stories like that recently

As did Meridian and London. I don't think it makes the situation better when they reference a place in the report-for example the Birmingham school was actually referred to.

Didn't see the report myself as I was working but that sounds bonkers. It's everything I was afraid of and more.

What a farce. Again.

That was one of the worst examples of this occurring, most of the filler stories have tended to be non-news but at least from the region, and in many cases they don't need to fill with stuff like this at all, particularly when they run with a pan-regional bit at the start meaning they only come together at the end just in time for the weather.

I'd much rather see ITV be allowed an extra 5 minutes of ads in peak time than this, with a specification that three and a half of those minutes are to air within the regional bulletin. I think most viewers would be far more accepting of an ad break than a report which is clearly filler.

Border had the story too, and they aren't supposed to get these aggregated stories. Makes a mockery of Pam Royal's "Full half hour of news for Cumbria and south west Scotland). 1 or 2 of these aggregated stories I have seen must of inserts for 'regional bits'. There was one last week about some rock music thing at Houses of Parliament but on Border they had Border MP's giving thoughts in bits, and on Tyne Tees, North East MPs thoughts.

Sorry replying to quite an old post.



That kind of shared story with someone doing theatres across the UK (incl particular ITV regions) is probably seen as not a 'bad' one. Also you have to remember probably 90% of the Calendar viewers probably don't have a clue Fred is a Meridian presenter/reporter. So won't be as 'blatent' to them.

ITV News Meridian tonight had an aggregate item from a place called Blofield, in Norfolk! Norfolk was explicitly mentioned in the report. It was a feature item about the large minority of UK viewers who still watch television in black-and-white.

The report began and ended with a close-up of the grainy screen of a very old clunky TV set which was displaying the current ITV News Meridian (Thames Valley) title sequence in black & white. Presumably, umpteen different versions of these two inserts were recorded, for each region/sub-region that would be running the aggregate item.

Intriguing that it was the Thames Valley titles shown (which is where I do indeed live), considering that the item occurred during the pan-South latter half of the Meridian programme. Presumably, South Coast viewers saw their version of the Meridian titles on the black & white screen?

That story was in the ITV News Anglia headlines today - I assume it was repackaged by them for other regions?