"BBC WORLD"

I've seen only part of this 'Emerging Giants' package and it looks truly awful. Powerpoint meets animation.

I'm surprised this hasn't been played up more on the domestic scene. Would have been nicely trailed on News 24, hell even JULIA CEASER, yes her, could have mentioned it more.

Harshy,

Isn't it just. Awful seems to be a word I use a lot to describe World at the moment. Poor Mr Wilcox was cut clean during one his sentences the other day, not even bothering to let him finish. Admitadly, it is a bit better than went the system was first brought online but it's still very annoying (and unproffesional) having the presenter cut half way though.

I know hynsite is a wonderful thing but World certainly was a lot better than this.

Anyone else noticed in the past few days the watermark for programmes other than news has changed? Its got the bigger BBC logo and isnt transperant.

Yes that's exactly what happened, Tim Willcox just cut off in mid sentence, now 5 years ago, admittably things weren't totally perfect like the technology they used in the breakfiller, it used to crash and just freeze, but everything was done properly all the presentaton components fitted very well, now BBC News 24 has taken over, and it's pretty obvious even on TV Forum, BBC World's pres must be really boring now, as I quite often find this thread around bottom of page 2 to 3!

Hello everyone, I watch BBCworld since 2 years , I did't watch it at the beginning so I can't compare. But I find their news bulletin and their news coverage excellent . And if a news presenter is cut off, ok it's not polite but for me it is not a big thing......it happens in other place too.
I have watched CNN and Euronews, but BBCworld remains for me the best international news channel, whatever change they have made or will make in their presentation.

So whos been presenting weekends recently? Have we still had a mish-mash of people? And has Manisha turned up again?

Hallo Jamej,

This weekend on BBC World was a complete mis-mash of presenters, as you noted. In sequence, they were:

Saturday 1: Tim Willcox (who was very good IMO)
Saturday 2: Anya Sitaram
Saturday 3: Jonathan Charles
This Week: Tim Willcox

Sunday 1: Alastair Yates (sublime, as always)
Sunday 2: Phillipa Thomas (quite good too)
Sunday 3: Jonathan Charles
HYS: Lyse Doucet
Reporters: Zeinab Badawi

Peter Dobbie and Anya Sitaram have been doing quite a bit of mid-week shifts these last couple of weeks. Nisha Pillai has been in Bombay all week. Manisha Tank has been strictly doing the Biz this week too.

There have been some infrequent appearances in the last 14 days too by Lindsey Brancher and haven't seen much of Lucy Hockings either. And Emily Buchanan made a few appearances on The World!

I can now see why all you guys over at N24 rate Tim Willcox highly. He was very good.

I am still not finding any pleasure though in watching Mr. Gowing's bulletins at all (haven't since 1996, to be honest)

James

I don't think BBCWorld should feel threatened by those new players. Al-jazeera enjoys such dreadful publicity in the West - although, I'll grant you that, it is quite trusted in the Middle East, where a fair share of World's viewers is located. Whether viewers there will remain faithful to the BBC will depend on how Al-jezeera is able to market itself as a global, open-minded, NON-BIASED, impartial channel driven by a spirit of excellence and fairness in journalism.The risk of course is that they may feel tempted to limit their output to regional coverage, and thus they'll attract a different kind of viewers. In this case there'll be room for both channels.
As for the French International Station you mention, it's a joke right? If not, well brace yourself for a lumbering, mind-numbing channel. It'll mean stultifyingly dull journalism, franco-centric both in terms of the topics discussed and the stories covered, but more importantly vis-a-vis the ideas conveyed. The French can't help thinking they have the truth on everything, and so every story will be analysed through a French eye. That's French-style television for you, in all its vanity and self-conceit and hollowness.There's a lot to fear about, but certainly nothing likely to threaten our beloved channel.

Now, I seldom watch CNNi so I can't compare the two on a daily basis and comprehend how they evolve.But one thing's certain, no matter what you may object, it's that the channel IS definitely improving, and going back to October 2004, when cock-ups and technical failures were ubiquitous, the difference is palpable. And it's been a continued trend, which embraces last year as well. It might not be so noticeable or tangible a difference, but still cock-ups are on a descending slope, however slight. At least that's the impression I've got.

In my opinion World will remain a proudly different rolling news network, with, as you mention, bulletins that are not continuously featured, flagship programs that renders the output a unique blend of news, analyses of the global world picture on various grounds (economic, environmental, touristic, etc), renowned interview programs like HardTalk and far-reaching debates from across the globe. The slogan will be changed in a few years' time as were the previous ones, but those enduring features that have lived through the rebranding campaigns and redesigns are here to stay, and WBR, Fasttrack, Earthreport will be constant reminders that BBCWorld's output is about what life is like in different parts of the world, not centered on lofty abstractions far removed from daily living, which is the impression I sometimes get when watching Bloomberg TV for instance; that's what makes this channel so vibrant and colourful, and makes the WBR, for exemple, a truly economic program, not a simple financial update. I have to admit (and I've stated that earlier I think) that over the last few years seems to have aroused a deication to make the output even more down-to-earth and close to daily matters, which I tend to resent (e.g. FastTrack being anchored from a holiday destination instead of being presented from a studio like prior to 2004), but overall the aims they strive for and the principles that beckon this channel onward haven't changed much. Better not in fact.

Is that a new brand of industrial strength floor cleaner?

Yeah, adds that certain touch.

A bit like hindsight , that's wonderful too!

Haibara, regarding the French international news channel: here you can find further information:

BBC News

Der Spiegel (a longer article for whoever might be interested)

World News Today, with George Alagiah

He's in the US all this week promoting the channel and his new show.