[Lec_Ver16]

The screens seem sharp (i wonder if they changed them), but looking at the regional studios or the Breakfast one, they look horribly outdated. The low celling won`t help on a refurb to put a bigger screen, so i think that the possibilities are kind of limited on what they can do.

[bbctvtechop]

Apparently it’s LBH now, not NBH.

LBH is London Broadcasting House (as opposed to, say, Cardiff Broadcasting House) and refers to the whole complex of Old Broadcasting House, New Broadcasting House and Peel Wing.

NBH is still New Broadcasting House but it's less relevant to specify which part of LBH you mean now given that the huge majority of London based output comes from the one building, and staff know their way round.

Perhaps they should start adopting the WS concept of "hard posts", would certainly avoid situations like these.


They should already know what time the various feeds and opt-outs go in and out, what's stopping them planning around that?

Exactly. They ARE hard posts (technically, I think, soft posts, as in they don't need to be to the second but within about 15 seconds or so). WS radio when I was there - possibly still the case - had 13 hard posts most hours. And you had to hit them as your studio got cut off from the network as part of an automatic switch whether you liked it or not.

However, whichever way you do it is hard to achieve.

- Playing a VT, you need to back time it perfectly, which really just moves the post earlier by a few minutes, meaning you need to do one of the below still anyway, and puts it at an awkward time to count to.

- Presenter fills, you need enough script/ad libbed material to do so properly. Plus on TV you have someone counting in your ear constantly (radio presenters just stare at the clock while talking).

- Live interview, you need to guess your guest's answer to the last question pretty accurately so they finish answering it between 10 and 20 seconds before the post, leaving enough time for the presenter to thank and wrap up. Pretty impossible to do with MoP guests, slightly easier with trained correspondents who can be counted down by production staff, or at least take the hints from noises or phrases the presenter is making/saying.

[DTV]

As with most of the recent presentational changes, it ultimately looks a bit better than it did yesterday, but hard to understand why these things weren't done months ago/why things ended up in such a state that this constitutes improvement.

Moving to E was always going to be a plus, purely through dint of the fact nine out of ten people agree it was the better-looking of the two studios.

The Business Today titles are fine - I mean, sure, they are a bit PowerPointy and stock footagey, but a) so were the iconic 'barcode' WBR titles and b) they're far from the worst of the current set or the worst BBC business programme titles ever. Ultimately, it's just a rebadging and I still don't think the oddly scheduled 11' bulletins sit well in the schedule, but it's a net neutral change at heart.

As I've said before, it's good that the channel is stumbling towards or at least trying to get somewhere better, but nearly all of these things should have been decided/fixed pre-launch of the merger and the underlying content of the channel is still far too slowly-paced.

[Moz]

Programme bugs have been in use since The World Today - are they new or had I just not noticed them recently?

[ginnyfan]

The Context with Christian Fraser

www.youtube.com 

[oscillon]

Programme bugs have been in use since The World Today - are they new or had I just not noticed them recently?

They've never left The Context (just became red) and were re-introduced in The World Today when it replaced The Daily Global (which lacked them).

[South]

Now that E is back in use it would be nice if D could be used for UK opts instead of the balcony. BBC London could still use it for their lunchtime bulletin, which should be easier once the One becomes an hour long.

It would also be nice if A could be brought back into use, along with C getting an update. Probably best designed as multipurpose studios, so that either News Channel or World Service programmes could utilise those studios. It seems daft for them to be sitting empty, whilst I believe some studios in other parts of Broadcasting House are essentially converted office space.

Maybe a project for Erron when he starts his new role overseeing all London news studios.

It is very unlikely D will be used for any UK opt in the current financial climate. We have to remember it is far cheaper to power one plasma screen and lights around a single locked off camera than it is a whole studio, with someone required in the gallery to switch camera angles as well as line up story feed and control graphics. The BBC is far from being alone in opting for single locked off camera shots in a flash type studio or space as CNN are also doing the same. The facts are the ways people digest the news are different from what they were 20 years ago and the BBC have to adapt accordingly. I personally don't think they have got there yet, my personal opinion is more video and report options are required online, but again I appreciate that costs money.

[IanJRedman]

Chris Cook said just now that 16:9 (ie, not 4:3 safe) graphics are in the pipeline.

twitter.com 

[xlalonce]

Chris Cook said just now that 16:9 (ie, not 4:3 safe) graphics are in the pipeline.

twitter.com 

Current Graphics are 14:9-safe

[IanJRedman]

Current Graphics are 14:9-safe

I stand corrected. Thinking about it, 4:3 would be a bit extreme