BBC World News - to 14th January 2013

They look like mockups to me, an early stage in the process of determining what the actual backdrop will be.

I would go as far to say that's not actually taken on set. The desk looks huge compared to other shots we've seen, and the screens to the side, supposedly huge plasmas, look tiny.

They are - they're taken from the Global Minds site regarding what sort of backdrop viewers prefer.

What were the other options?

https://www.bbcglobalminds.com/cs/forums/t/6535.aspx

For those without a Global Minds account (I only signed up to see what the fuss was), the other options were:

- View of London
- View of London with BBC graphics
- BBC graphics
- BBC's new building

And this was the corresponding image...

http://www.bbcglobalminds.com/cs/photos/storage/1000.3.63139.collages_finale.jpg

And the overwhelming favourite from having skimmed the 16 pages was having a view of London. In my opinion, I think this is unlikely.

I agree, and I think it is rightly unlikely. It is after all a global news channel, whether it comes from London or not. A shot of the newsroom would be both aesthetically pleasing and would receive no criticism of being too London-centric.

Indeed, whilst everybody seemed to think that having a London backdrop would be fine, and would have no impact on bias or anything, there were those few going 'I LIVE IN LANCASTER AND I DON'T WANT TO SEE LONDON'.

Some of the users seem to be touting the idea of having a cycle, so the background changes through various landmarks. Is it just me, or does that sound ridiculous?

Funnily enough, it's the international audience of BBC World News that seem to prefer the London backdrop.

Yes, that's exactly the same impression I gained too. Another point was singling out London as the city for the backdrop, while there are other major international cities. One suggestion was having a collage of different iconic landmarks, changing it throughout the day, or even reflecting the location of the story. All very sensible suggestions. Then, the argument of what the first B in BBC stands for, so why not reflect the popularity of London landmarks in the backdrop?

I was most impressed by the validity of points on that forum. Grown-up, well presented debating and point-making. Dare I say, something that this forum is a stranger to at times.

Any caps?