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Ofcom's honeymoon period is over. Even before its inception we criticised both the philosophy behind its creation and the huge straddling regulatory remit it has.Back in August 2003, as the shadow Ofcom was set up, we were told that the running costs for the organisation would be £125m a year, 7% lower than the combined budgets of the five predecessors.
In April 2004 the figure had dramatically changed to £164m, a 27% increase in the cost of the five regulatory bodies it replaced.
Ofcom is certainly busy with its flood of consultations, reviews, guidance notes, codes and reports. It has now published its plans for activities over the next period which show no slackening in pace.
But it is only now, with the publication of its review of public service broadcasting, that we see that some of the CPBF's predictions about the role and function of Ofcom are being confirmed. The essence of the Ofcom position is that the commercial broadcasting market can provide a wide range of programmes and that public service broadcasting is about bridging the shortfall.
This is an absurd position. To limit the BBC to providing programmes which commercial broadcasters find commercially unattractive is to assign it a marginal and ultimately irrelevant role. Ofcom also comes up with another dangerous proposal: why not let the commercial broadcasters have licence fee money to make public service programmes?
Broadcasters and producers could compete for 'contestable funds' from either the licence fee or some other source, to make programmes.
Ofcom's proposals also raise important questions about the future of the BBC's online activities, its foray into digital television, and News 24. The logic of the Ofcom analysis is that the BBC is excluded from such areas because commercial organisations can provide them.
Ofcom also has this peculiar hybrid view of us as 'citizen-consumers'. What does that mean?
All in all the Ofcom review is deeply worrying because it indicates that the economists and others who are developing policy care very little about the BBC and its role in our society. Which is one powerful argument for not allowing Ofcom to oversee the public service remit of the BBC.
Last modified: Monday, July 12, 2004
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World Press Freedom Day
More reporters are currently imprisoned in Turkey than in any other country in the world. Only a matter of weeks ago lawyers failed to persuade a Turkish court to release a 76-year-old journalist from a Turkish internet news station.
World Press Freedom Day on Friday May 3, 2013 is being marked in Britain by a rally to highlight the dangers facing journalists in Turkey and in this podcast, Nicholas Jones speaks to Barry White, Organiser at the Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom, and Sam Bamford, the TUC's policy officer for Eastern Europe and Africa about the importance of a campaign to highlight international press freedom.
The World Press Freedom Day rally is being staged by the National Union of Journalists at the NUJ head office, Gray’s Inn Road, London WC1 on Thursday May 2, 6pm-8pm.
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The UK launch of a 'European Citizens' Initiative' calling for EU rules against concentration of media power will take place on Thursday March 21 from 11:00am – 12:30pm in Committee Room 4A at the House of Lords, London. Guest speakers will include actor and activist Hugh Grant (pictured), media consultant Claire Enders, Professor Steven Barnett, Barry McCall (President of the NUJ) and Marc Gruber (Director of the European Federation of Journalists).
A European Citizens' Initiative is an official petition, like a Downing Street petition. If it succeeds in gathering a million signatures across the EU, the Commission is obliged to respond.
This petition calls for the EU to act to protect media pluralism and press freedom.
CPBF Annual General Meeting
DATELINE: 1/3/13
Make a note in your diary
Saturday 13 July 2013 from 10.00am
NUJ HQ, 308/312 Gray's Inn Road, London WC1.
Leveson, media ownership, CPBF future work.
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The media’s job is to inform and entertain us but we rely on them too to tell us what our rulers and representatives are up to. In the run-up to the Iraq war the government used spin and disinformation in the media to create panic and mislead people. The truth is coming out now, but we need stronger, more independent media to be able to scrutinise governments and make informed choices.
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Previous stories
Ofcom
OFCOM NEWS RELEASE - Ofcom simplifies advertising regulation with 'one-stop-shop' for consumer complaints
OFCOM UPDATE - Ofcom publishes process for the future licensing of FM commercial radio
Ofcom consultative documents
OFCOM Watch
OFCOM Watch
On and Ofcom...
OFCOM AND PRESS REGULATION
OFCOM role to include the BBC?
