BBC 'Bias'?

I've made a video about something I've long noticed on Twitter, and often engaged in battles about it.

Increasingly, whenever there is a report on television or if a BBC account posts something on Twitter, it is shut down by many Labour supporters as bias, immediately, without so much as a pause for thought.

They have a view that the BBC is a government mouthpiece and shoot down any negative reporting of Labour (and Corbyn in particular) as BBC Bias. In contrast, their response to reports critical of the government is much more muted.



Traditionally it's the Right which has accused the BBC of bias. The idea of such a large publicly funded broadcaster is, after all, pretty socialist.

There are still accusations of bias from the Right, particularly over Brexit but I have increasingly noticed an irrational response from the Left, and it really does seem irrational to me.

Is it just me, or does the BBC still report with pretty decent standards of impartiality? Perhaps someone will argue the case against what I've said, and maybe I am just a "BBC Apologist" as I have been called since posting the video.

No unfortunately not. I've been called worse by Scottish Nationalists for defending the BBC in terms of impartiality. If folk think the BBC is a government mouthpiece for the Tories, then have a look at what the Nats say about BBC, but also BBC staff.

If the level-headed among us aren't prepared to accept the critical failures within the BBC, it will fail to exist within a matter of years. The bias issues aren't as extreme as some critics claim, but they DO exist. Completely brushing aside any criticism is just as bad as the 'mob' baying for BBC blood.

Some easy fixes are required:

1) Stop allowing the UK Government to influence the appointment of the BBC Trust members. It's insane that the current Board is dominated by former Tory politicians.

2) Ensure greater scrutiny of senior editorial appointments. There are a number of people in newsroom management posts with seriously questionable political leanings. I actually don't believe most of the day-to-day journalists are prepared to allow personal bias to invade their professional judgement. Newsroom managers are different. They tend to come from newspaper backgrounds at the Beeb, and almost all have various political skeletons in their closets. They should never have been allowed anywhere near the BBC.

3) Stop batting away criticism. The BBC press office has got a little too pointed in its responses recently. Accept criticism, and move on.

4) Create greater devolution of license fee spend and decision making. If BBC Wales wants to create a standalone channel, like BBC Scotland, let it. It needs to find the money and spend the money how it sees fit.

5) Stop embedding a 'bias against understanding'. This sits alongside the newsroom manager newspaper background argument. The BBC is now obsessed with reporting splits, arguments and gossip. It has become a tabloid, and a shi* one at that. Get back to fact reporting and explaining.

Once they've dealt with that, you Gary McEwan, can defend them. Until then, you're on a hiding to nothing!

They're not biased, in fact they try to be TOO neutral, giving equal prominence to people and subjects that don't deserve it. Like with climate change and plenty of discredited brexit opinions.

This thread will go well.

You've just proved my point...

The far right also criticise the BBC for bias, in particular "Tommy Robinson" who recently released a supposed god-awful expose on his own Panorama doc on YouTube.

If both the far left and far right are critical of the Beeb's news coverage, then they're being accurate and impartial.

To be fair, no decent person cares what Yaxley-Lennon has to say anyway.

Blimey! What’s all this!

Who?

I have spare popcorn if you need it