Wednesday, March 15, 2006

BBC White Paper

A "unique solution for a unique organisation" with measures to put the licence fee payer at the heart of everything the BBC does, were set out by Culture Secretary Tessa Jowell today, as she published a white paper on the future of the corporation.

The white paper, A public service for all: the BBC in the digital age, confirms that the BBC will be overseen by a new Trust that is separate from its management and will actively work to ensure the interests of the public are paramount at all times.

Central to this will be ensuring that the cycle of Charter reviews can't dictate the BBC's approach to its services.

In addition, the white paper sets out in further detail how the BBC will be expected to reach a more consensual relationship with the media industry, providing transparency, certainty and clarity where its activities could have an impact on the wider market.

Ms Jowell also urged the BBC to "continue to take fun seriously" in the future, stressing that high quality entertainment remained a vital part of the corporation's mission.
More from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

There's lots of comment in all the newspapers, of course (e.g. MediaGuardian, The Times, and The Daily Telegraph) but most if not all of the contents of the White Paper were widely anticipated.

The common theme in most of the comment is that broadcasting is changing fast. As Torin Douglas says on BBC News: "Many in broadcasting find it hard to predict the next 10 months - let alone 10 years - so rapid is the pace of change in communications." Keeping pace with this change is and will continue to be the BBC's biggest challenge.

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