ITV News

It doesn't matter one bit, I just find it incredibly pointless. Just because it doesn't affect me doesn't mean I can't pass comment.

Well, for starters, ITV keeps cutting the budget for ITN to produce their news bulletins but are quite willing to pay to send presenters out to foreign countries when there is absolutely no need for it with nothing gained for the coverage of the story. I'd rather they ploughed the money wasted on such jaunts back into ITN.

i'm willing to be corrected but I would assume the decision to send people out is down to ITN itself rather than ITV. Anyway, surely you would need to know how much money it costs before you suggest it's 'ploughed' back into ITN.

it just looks a bit odd people suggesting when presenters 'should take a night off' and I personally think ITV News does the OB very well anyway.

Julie's autocue was broken and there was a distinct machine type noise in the background as she was presenting. Completely pointless having 2 presenters there. ITV, as usual, seem to spend most their coverage explaining how they covered the story in the 90s.

Well there are lots of variables and uncertainties. However, they do quite a few OBs during the course of a year. You would have a technical team with the presenter, factor in travel for each member of the team, accomodation, satellite bookings, equipment costs etc etc....it must add up to quite a lot of money in a financial year.

Regardless of cost, my point still stands - what is gained from having a presenter in a studio in Belgrade rather than London? They're blurring the lines between presenter and reporter too much for my liking. A presenter should always be at the 'base' (i.e. London) and it is the job of the reporter to be on location. In my opinion, only in exceptional circumstances should a presenter be deployed to the scene when their presence there can add something to the coverage. Quite what Mark Austin sitting in a CSO studio in Belgrade adds, I don't know. It was even more ridiculous during tonight's News at Ten - at one point we had Julie on location interviewing Mark, also on location in the studio. For Pete's sake!

So am I right in saying that Mark Austin was in Sarajevo and Julie Etchingham was in Belgrade on ITV today?

Seems odd.

I know I've been a BBC boy when it comes to news but I have to say last night the News At Ten covered the capture and history of Radovan Karadzicmuch better than The Ten O'Clock News.

I think you mean 'BBC News at Ten' . Shame on you cylon6, wash your mouth out with printer toner

I just can't bring myself to say it, there's only one News At Ten and that's on ITV. I still don't like saying The London Studios and prefer to call it the old LWT building!!

I wonder who's clever idea it was to have Julie stood next to the BBC reporter (sorry I don't know his name), he was clearly audible and then putting BBC News at Ten on Julie was clearly audible there as well

I never actually watched either News at Ten last night (I was watching the far more intellectual and mentally challenging Big Brother ) but I heard it was Mary in the studio on her own? Thats quite a strange choice if true ...

The way your speaking about Mary is quite strange. She just read the 'other news' in the studio, just as she did on the Evening News. It would be pointless bringing in Trevor.

I don't mean it in a bad way, I just mean its a bit strange that Mary presented it alone so they essentially had two females presenting the show (which I know does happen from time to time). Normally when Julie is out of the studio, Trevor presents from the studio as usual. I'm quite surprised nobody picked up on that aspect of the presentation ....