More negative BBC news

[coolguy]

Originally Posted by SCP440

Yes exactly, it does not matter how well the government are doing they always seem to be negative.

In my view for every negative they should be a positive.

Totally agree. Statistics are a fine example. I would much rather hear that 49 out of 50 people in the UK do NOT have the virus than 1 in 50 does. However, the danger in this is that folk would relax their efforts to comply to beat the virus. Damned if you do, damned if you don't.

[SCP440]

A perfect example of bad statistics is the appalling death rate. The BBC keep saying we have the highest amount of deaths in Europe, only partially correct. We have a high death rate but we have a lot of people. We are actually the 6th.

If you do it on per head of population which is actually the correct way of doing it Belgium trumps any other country by at about 20% followed by Italy and a couple more before we get to the UK and then the next dozen or so nations are all within a few percent of each other so we are actually doing no worse than many other countries.

What the BBC should be saying is we are doing so much better than many European countries and our vaccination program is one of the best in the world.

The French are in a bad way and a lot of there citizens are sceptical about having a vaccine. That is going to be a big problem going forward. If Boris gets us all vaccinated by the end of this year we can start getting back to normal.

[edwardmk]

There are several interesting books on perceived bias in the BBC. Apparently George Orwell wrote his famous book based on his experiences as a BBC employee. I have an issue with how they are reporting deaths too. My frustration is tempered with hoping they know the data exaggerates the deaths from Covid but believe we all need to be thoroughly scared to get better compliance. Deaths for any reason within 28 days of a positive Covid test when the test is giving off many false positives is definitely a political construct to improve compliance. I can forgive them that one.

[MissMoppet]

Originally Posted by SCP440

If you do it on per head of population which is actually the correct way of doing it Belgium trumps any other country by at about 20% followed by Italy and a couple more before we get to the UK and then the next dozen or so nations are all within a few percent of each other so we are actually doing no worse than many other countries.

If you want to impress yer mates see here:

[andymc]

I make no defence of the BBC's indefensible, long-running failures over equal pay. However, I've added a piece of information to your post, which I've highlighted in bold, to provide additional context to your quote of Sharp's views.

The BBC's lack of reporting on the story you mention strikes me as a mere editorial decision, rather than one which would be either left- or right-leaning, pro- or anti-Brexit. It seems reasonable to me that the British Broadcasting Corporation should report on how British drivers and British businesses are affected - otherwise, it would be open to accusations along the lines of "why is the BBC reporting about those farmers in Holland - what about British farmers/drivers/workers? God forbid they should report about things that affect us! Typical BBC bias!!" There's a certain demographic determined to find a reason to complain, and with these folk nothing the Beeb does will be ever be satisfactory.

I will say that the notion that the BBC is full of left-wing bias just doesn't stand up to scrutiny. This is 2021 - it no longer matters what George Orwell thought of the people who worked there, because they're all long gone. In the current era, the most "heavyweight" of the BBC's politicial journalists was, until his very recent departure, Andrew Neil - people may remember that Boris Johnson was criticised during the last general election for "chickening out" of being interviewed by him. Neil used to be the editor of the Sunday Times, under Rupert Murdoch - not exactly a fortress of reds under the bed. He also wrote for the Daily Mail and was the first chairman of Sky TV, again under Murdoch. He's also the chairman of the company which owns the Spectator - another publication not known for its socialist leanings. It seems a bit daft to claim that the BBC could have had a left-wing bias with him as its leading journalist.

[LeRich]

This thread appearing is quite timely as I have just completed a survey for the BBC where I was asked to score and comment on my perception of their quality, presence and reliability amongst other things. The final question related to the license fee and whether I considered it good value, which I do.

The survey invited comment so I obliged to explain the scoring I had given. The BBC fared generally well but I criticised them for their news reporting and editorial style which has clearly shifted to a more sensational leaning, with reporters and journalists less interested in straightforward facts but the creation of a story. Indeed, you'll notice the BBC loves to make headline news of its own interviews, particularly on a Sunday morning.

I continued to express disappointment and concern that the BBC was in danger of losing its credibility and its reputation for fairness and balance, with particular criticism leveled at the emerging aggressive interview technique adopted by many of its radio and TV journos (what happened to conversation?).

I love the BBC dearly but it's losing its way, I feel because of high-level political pressures applied by the threat of the license fee being pulled. The BBC must become subscription-based to sustain itself and to maintain the values on which its based.

[Georgies Dad]

They even have their own version of Mrs Krankie

[ND23]

It's strange how no-one has mentioned gender bias in this discussion. I am not a 'lefty liberal' nor a 'hard line tory' but I am fed up with the fact that in a country with so many debates regarding equality we have a public service broadcaster who thinks it acceptable to generate a main news page everyday which contains little or no reference to female sports. Of the seven articles published in the sports section of the main news page every day you can guarantee that at least six of the articles will be male dominated and that is more often than not, all seven. Does this mean that females do not participate in sports? No, it means that the BBC have fallen into very lazy reporting habits and only report on easy to reach subjects. Approximately 50% of the population of this country are female but apparently the BBC thinks it acceptable to ignore this. It also continues to applaud the likes of Lewis Hamilton who drives for a German racing team, lives in Monaco, pays no UK taxes but is 'voted' BBC sports personality of the year.

I think that it is very sad that we have such a biased public service broadcasting organisation, having experienced the alternatives, public service broadcasting is by far the best model to adopt. Once we lose that we will quickly follow the US model and be swamped with adverts and bias and be at the mercy of rich business interests and market forces. I would much rather have a well centred broadcaster who maybe veers slightly off centre (whichever way) from time to time than an overt left wing or right wing organisation but it's a pity the BBC do not seem to realise it's strengths and pander to external influences whether they be political or sexist or just plain downright populist. I'm going to lay down in a darkened room now without the TV on!

[Rogue]

Originally Posted by ND23

pays no UK taxes

Is in fact in the top 5000 tax payers in the UK!

[ND23]

Originally Posted by Rogue

Is in fact in the top 5000 tax payers in the UK!

He lives in that well known tax haven Monaco and to be honest given the money he earns to say he is in the top 5000 tax payers in the UK speaks volumes for his tax avoidance. Still doesn't alter the fact that he drives for a German racing team and lives the high life in Monaco, what's the UK got to be proud of?