12-04-2024, 05:18 PM
(12-04-2024, 04:59 PM)all new phil Wrote: I think an element of it is there’s no real clear indication of who the viewer is right now. I was never a fan of the format of old, where you had double headed presentation, business / sport presenter in the studio etc - but I understood who they were aiming at. It was quite broad in its appeal. Now I’ve no idea. What’s the audience for a cold single-headed plod through some seemingly unconnected mix of international and hyper local stories?Yes that's definitely a big part of the issue too. 'Who exactly is this for?' is something that's often crossed through my mind when I've caught the new channel - even whether it should be UK- or World-prioritised has seemingly not been answered.
I got the rationale for the recent changes and thought they could be workable if done right. Despite what you see on screen though, I would still guess the channel is better resourced than Sky News. Their issues are completely down to a lack of vision and imagination rather than resources.
I think BBC World News circa 2007-13 is a good comparator here; not just because things like the Alagiah WNT were probably the most consistently watchable BBC news channel programmes, but because that was a channel that was confident, on the up and with a purpose - every single slot had a focus and an audience in mind and it showed.
The resources point is also good. Cost is sometimes cited for the disappearance of packages, but, if a broadcast news organisation the size of BBC News can't have 6-8 relevant domestic 2' VTs and 6-8 relevant international 2' VTs to hand at any one time, that's some combination of choice/failure rather than a financial issue. National broadcasters in smaller European countries running on pennies to the BBC's pound can put together enough for full-length news bulletins, let alone their UK competitors.