Matt Walsh

Absolutely terrific

Anyone who works in digital will have read that OBR report and seen that there were six (6) people employed across HR, IT, comms and website maintenance. There’s your problem, right there.

Not a fan of Xmas stuff too early, but BBC Radio 3’s coverage of the first Sunday of Advent has been terrific. Especially the choir from St Andrew’s.

Does Comcast’s bid for ITV mean the end for either ITN or Sky News? Who will survive the TV news Hunger Games?

Comcast's bid for ITV's broadcast business means it could find itself involved with two competing TV news operations - who will be the victor?
open.substack.com/pub/mattwals...

But I realise that's all a bit speculative

I assume it's an overabundance of caution following legal advice because the programme is broadcast in the US. I would think the BBC's libel insurance would not cover a programme that left the line in against legal advice. With Trump threatening to sue for billions, that was a risk too far.

Times headline: ‘BBC failing to tackle systemic bias, says author of leaked memo’. In fact, when asked by MPs, this man, Michael Prescott, said he didn’t believe the BBC was institutionally biased. The Times failed to quote that, in an article about the issue of truthful reporting.

Bonkers. What on earth were they thinking?

Crisis what crisis? A day of unconvincing testimony on the BBC A big boy did it and ran away, say BBC board members to Parliament

A not very convincing day of evidence from the BBC board and its advisors to the media select committee
mattwalsh.substack.com/p/crisis-wha...

Broadcast has some more details about Richard Sambrook's role on the review (paywall but you can register for a free article) www.broadcastnow.co.uk/bbc/bbc-laun...

Which is worse? Mistaking a Clarke for a Clark or a fedora for a trilby?

He did while smoking a small cigar and listening to jazz

Pleased to hear that Cardiff University’s Professor Richard Sambrook has been appointed as an independent advisor to review the work of the BBC’s editorial guidelines and standards committee. The right man for the job.

I’d recommend more investment in external academic research by trusted partners

To what extent was he a suitable person for the role? A PR who’d not worked in news for 20 years and never worked in broadcasting

BBC to expand standards panel and add deputy director general after bias row Planned overhaul of editorial guidelines committee would dilute influence of Tory board appointment Robbie Gibb

Can't see a shake-up of the standards committee being enough, but a deputy DG makes a lot of sense - and indeed has worked in the past. Still don't understand why two PR people are the external advisors on standards.
www.theguardian.com/media/2025/n...

I also suspect the answer they wanted was not “because I’m an angry, menopausal woman in her fifties who is three times as efficient as someone half my age.” Which was certainly the answer the applicant considered giving

And on this topic a shoutout to this recent application form that wanted to know why applicants were magical. Twee nonsense

This is true. Look at all those ads that ask for dynamic, driven, dynamos, whirlwinds, ninjas and so on. They mean young. Agism is still a respectable form of discrimination

Eloniscool420! - guaranteed

I’m guessing his password is Eloniscool

A fine night for Cardiff’s JOMEC at the BJTC journalism awards. Students came home with best TV News Report, Online Story, Social Short, and TV News Day. A clean sweep!

Yeah, Grok. Everyone’s got a plan until they get punched in the face

19th November and I’ve already been subjected to Stop the Cavalry. Beyond wrong.

Excellent and courageous investigative journalism.
The fact that it is (apparently) legal to do this to people is utterly disgusting.

BBC bias? The Prescott memo falls well short of the standards of impartiality it demands The Prescott memo contained no research questions or objectives, method, sample, time frame or, crucially, analytical framework for examining output.

A new article by @stephencushion.bsky.social for @theconversation.com highlights while the BBC is no stranger to accusations of bias, the Prescott memo is far from the rigorous assessment many assumed it to be.

🔗 tinyurl.com/3cx8edjp

🧵👇

#journalism #journalismstudies #BBC #mediareporting

Focus group participants told me and my colleagues over many hours of discussions that they see mainstream journalism as being bound up with a political system that is failing. For example, journalists may positively report percentage points of economic growth and demand sensible spending plans, but many people simply don’t believe things will get better. In our most recent study, which analysed media content and audience reception in relation to the cost of living crisis (and will be published as a book in 2026), we found that journalists, in line with politicians, reported the crisis as a short-term shock, temporarily raising food and energy prices. But our participants understood the crisis as one of long-term decline in their communities and standard of living. In other words, there is a disconnect between the priorities and beliefs of journalists and their audiences. This disconnect was evident across all demographic groups studied – yet not all are affected to the same degree. Our findings point to a correlation between those most disaffected with the political system – particularly those really struggling – and the likelihood of investing trust in alternative “news” sources.

Important question: interesting answer. "What a decade of research reveals about why people don’t trust media in the digital age" (theconversation.com/what-a-decad...)

Boardroom dramas, backstabbing and the BBC‘s darkest hour | The Observer

Good and apparently well sourced article on the mess the BBC got itself into observer.co.uk/news/nationa...

Nick Ross in The Times today upholds the golden rule that there is always someone who’s had well remunerated career at the BBC that’s ready to call for its abolition

BBC bias? The Prescott memo falls well short of the standards of impartiality it demands The Prescott memo contained no research questions or objectives, method, sample, time frame or, crucially, analytical framework for examining output.

I’ve just published a new article in the @uk.theconversation.com entitled 'BBC bias? The Prescott memo falls well short of the standards of impartiality it demands’ Thread 1/8: theconversation.com/bbc-bias-the...