BBC Election 2019 with Talkback

I just tweeted with mediaboy and he said he knew only 5 seconds to air.

I am quite surprised at the secrecy. Thought journalists or the ones working on the broadcast would be trusted enough not to release the data on air until 10PM. I can understand not telling the on air people as they could screw up and say something.

Is it more ensuring nothing inadvertently slips to air? The fewer people know the less chance of something happening. Something as simple as a handwritten note with the numbers on that a camera accidentally picks up could have huge repercussions.

In Nick Robinson’s Book he talks about a select few being in a meeting room to get the exit poll results as they stood. These included him, David Dimbleby, Jeremy Vine and the election night editor.

I can't remember which election it was, but I have a vague recollection that on one election night, Andrew Marr was reported to have texted a politician about the exit poll result before it was officially released.

Having been a student of some of the professors who work on the exit poll, I have been reliably informed that at recent elections they have had their phones conviscated at the start of the day and are escorted when leaving the room where the exit poll work is being calculated so as to ensure they do not communicate the data with anybody. Security is very high.

The exit poll headlines are finalised at about 2130 (unless the late data shows something radically different) and senior journalists are told not long after that. I believe all the exit poll work is done at the BBC, and the other network's psephologists do not leave the BBC until very close to broadcast.



This was 2017. Marr is alleged to have called Conservative advisers shortly before broadcast to get a response (although he claims it was mere seconds before 2200). However, other sources have claimed that the Conservatives were informed at least 15 minutes in advance and some have even suggested that Labour had received a leak at around 2000.

I thought a small number of people, including the presenter, get the exit poll info at 9pm ish.

...I think there's reference to this in one of Nick Robinson's books.

...And, indeed, a reference to that a few posts above.

It's also the last and only bit that can be recorded - after 10pm they have an exit poll and so all the content is based on that

It’s worth bearing in mind as well that it is illegal in the U.K. to report an opinion poll while voting is taking place and the polling stations do not officially close until 2200. That’s why on polling day, there is almost no coverage in news programmes, online or on social media other than very dull, factual lines like “The polls are open and the Prime Minister arrived a short time ago at xxxx to cast his/her ballot”. Hiding studio screens, keeping those who have the information to the bare minimum, not putting it on graphics outputs, not projecting it onto the front of BH - all very sensible!

Keeping it on a need to know basis helps to avoid tabloid headlines - potentially if the exit poll predicted a shock result somebody in the know before it's announced could benefit via a Bookie's mobile app. The papers would have a field day if that happened and got out.

I warmly embrace those days where there can be no political reports, especially when on the lead up to any General Election there have been wall to wall reports of the "he said, she said" type for months on end. When this came on the back of the continuous Brexit story (twhich has rumbled on now for almost five years), viewer and listener fatigue does kick in.

I'm at an age where I do shout at the TV and radio now, in a Victor Meldrew style. It's usually when the same point is raised yet again.
The US Election - has that finished yet? How long before the speculation on the next leader of their parties begins?

I know it is all important stuff, but it does seem sometimes to be saturation coverage to the exclusion of everything else happening in the world.

"Stand by, Big Ben"

Tom Bradby gave an interview last year saying he got the results 15-20 minutes before they went on air.