August 2015 Newsletter
Welcome to IBT’s August newsletter with a brief update on our work and relevant news from the media industry. (Print this Newsletter)
New BBC Charter
The debate about the future of the BBC has moved forward with the Government’s publication last month of its Green Paper. This is a consultation document which asks a number of questions about the size and scope of the BBC and its governance. There is now a public consultation to which IBT will be submitting evidence. The deadline for submissions is October 8th. We will be arguing that in order to fulfil the global purpose, of bringing the world to the UK, the BBC need to have the sort of scale and scope which it currently has. However, with the licence fee settlement having already taken place in the run up to the Budget, it’s clear that the BBC faces further cuts in the years ahead. A copy of the Green Paper can be found here:
Meeting with Tony Hall
Last month a group of IBT members met Tony Hall, the BBC Director-General. The aim of the meeting was for us to talk to him about the importance of the global purpose and of the BBC’s commitment to high quality international content across a range of genres and services. We had a useful discussion with Tony and other BBC executives who were present. He encouraged us to make our voice heard in the Green Paper consultation.
Launch of Public Voice
Next month, IBT will be launching a new group, Public Voice, which will bring together a number of civil society organisations to lobby on issues related to public service broadcasting, including the future of the BBC and the possible privatization of Channel 4. If you are interested in joining this group, please contact Sophie Chalk, IBT’s Head of campaigns: sophie.chalk@btinternet.com
Autumn events
We will continue with our briefings for IBT members in the Autumn. Details will be available in early September. We hope to hear from Sky News, Mail online, Telegraph online and CNN. We are also planning a number of training events which will be free to IBT members. On October 7th there will be two Twitter training sessions, one for beginners and one for more advanced users. The trainer will be Mary Mitchell, a social media expert, who has run some excellent sessions for us in the past. On December 10ththere will be an Instagram training session. Although these training events are principally aimed at media officers, other NGO staff who wish to develop their skills on social media will also find them useful. The training events can be booked via the IBT website.
Happy holidays!
Mark
