Sky News: Presentation Discussion

Have you seen viewing figures for Sky1 HD? BBC HD and ITV1 HD are available, but never seen Sky's HD channels ratings.

According to one comment on the MediaGuardian article the cost cutting is due to the expenditure on the new studio complex 4 years ago:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2010/may/21/sky-news-weather-presenters?showallcomments=true#CommentKey:3beb3aa3-aa49-4baf-ab37-c12046ee97c9

If they need to cost cut they could just cut down on sending up that helicopter... that must cost a bit

Well speaking as a new HD viewer, my choices are somewhat limited. The BBC content is a little dry (lots of worthy science, documentary and factual), but if I could watch *general* output in HD I'd have it on all the time - so that's worth factoring in to the equation.

OMG according to that Chris Roberts and also Geoff Meade are being dumped!

Please tell me that is not true.

Tactics, says I, Mr Cynical, ready to put forward their numerous angsts to the new Government, with the we are forced to make cuts now argument, it'll be more so, if you don't restrain Ofcom. The BBC and abandon the review of listed events.

ABC in Australia have just done something really stupid and ditched their HD channel in favour of launching a 24 hour news channel in HD - though a move pretty much forced up on them by Aussie restrictions on the number of channels they can have.



Or filming peoples front doors for hours in case someone comes out and says something!


This is one thing though I don't think is worth fighting for - it would be different if Sky had a decent weather service, but their forecasts are by far the worst on the box. The graphics are very poor and only indicate rain, whilst the presenters are not much better either. The service does need a revamp in order to give viewers the information they expect from a forecast more clearly - and if ditching weather forecasters is part of that so be it. I'd have thought though they might phase it in by ditching them on the 15 minute bulletins first before expanding to other programming.

Oh no... Please don't ruin your HD launch by axing so many people Sky!
If this goes ahead, Sky will be sure to lose more ground to the BBC.

The weather changes are understandable to an extent - but ditching one of their best anchors in Chris Roberts and best correspondents in Geoff Meade - is certainly not.

I am actually fuming with Sky about this. WHY should good journalists like Chris and Geoff have to suffer because of mass overspend by the bosses? It's not fair.

Not sure I buy that comment, does it really work that BSkyB loans money to divisions within itself and demands the money back? Obviously each channel works to a budget but it seems unlikely to me that BSkyB would act like a bank to that extent, but I could be wrong. If this were the case then why would Sky allow the studio revamp that took place last year.

Sky News has made a huge investment in HD and while I regret the loss of Francis Wilson etc. if I had to choose between weather forecasters and the HD service, HD would come out on top by some distance. It is a superb service and a big commitment by BSkyB to Sky News.I think we should wait to see what the 'headline forecasts' are like. It is quite possible that the new forecasts will be easier to follow and be more efficient than the current set up.

The s**t has hit the fan at Sky News and they're cutting corners all over the place.

What else could be ditched?

Moscow bureau (rarely used nowadays due to the end of the Cold War)
Dubai bureau (not quite sure why there was one established there anyway)
Africa bureau (probably won't get the axe, but I never seem to see any reports from Africa unless it involves Mandela or the World Cup)

Tim Marshall
and yes of course

Kay Burley.

I don't think Sky News in the UK will have such an impact on bureau's used by Sky News International not just the UK, but I'm sure a list of things to axe would exist

The Cold War ended in 1991, before Sky News had a Moscow bureau.