A transformative moment may be approaching for UK broadcasting. Dan Thomas, Global Media Editor at the Financial Times, discusses the potential implications of a Sky/ITV deal for the BBC, Channel 4, and the wider media landscape.
π§ Listen to the full conversation: podfollow.com/beebwatch
28.11.2025 14:22 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
ποΈNew episode. Author Andy Webb (βDianarama: The Betrayal of Princess Dianaβ) discusses his investigation into the BBC Panorama interview, Martin Bashirβs controversial methods, and how BBC actions may have shaped Princess Dianaβs fate.
π§https://podfollow.com/beebwatch
#PrincessDiana #BBC #Dianarama
20.11.2025 11:19 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
10 Million homes do not have pay-TV of any kind. Another 3.6 million homes use Freeview on at least two sets where they also have pay-TV i.e. are regular users of Freeview. Source: Everyone TV, the company behind Freely, Freeview and Freesat. How would they react to Nigel Farage's plans for the BBC?
18.11.2025 13:07 β π 8 π 4 π¬ 1 π 0
ββIt invites corruption.β Richard Ayre, former BBC executive, raises serious concerns about political influence over BBC appointments and what this means for public trust and governance.
Full conversation on our latest podcast episode: podfollow.com/beebwatch
#BBC #Governance #PublicTrust
12.11.2025 13:17 β π 4 π 0 π¬ 0 π 2
ποΈ New episode: Patrick Younge, former BBC Chief Creative Officer & ITV Studios board member, discusses BBC Panorama bias allegations, the impact of media consolidation, charter reform, & whatβs next for PSB in his British Broadcasting Challenge report.
π§https://podfollow.com/beebwatch
06.11.2025 11:38 β π 4 π 1 π¬ 0 π 1
MattFrei of @channel4news.bsky.social talks about his The Media Society @rtsmedia.bsky.social Steve Hewlett Lecture:
πΊπΈ The state of US democracy β whether it could happen here
πΊ BBCβs Gaza coverage
π° The future of traditional news
π¬ GB News, Trump & media polarisation
π§ podfollow.com/beebwatch
27.10.2025 09:38 β π 5 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
Ofcom keeps the rules the same β but the game has changed
Prof @stephencushion.bsky.social on Ofcomβs decision & what it means for impartial broadcasting. Are we heading for more opinion-led TV and radio?
π§ Full episode podfollow.com/beebwatch
#Ofcom #BBC #Impartiality #Media #BeebWatchPodcast
23.10.2025 10:26 β π 6 π 3 π¬ 0 π 2
Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch
Roger Bolton, formerly presenter of BBC Radio 4's 'Feedback' launches his very first podcast. Free from the constraints of broadcasting on the BBC, with a few more opinions and casting his net a ...
Been a bit behind on my listening, but caught up onlast few weeks of @beebwatch.bsky.social while batch cooking yesterday PM.
Thereβs another one out today, shining a vital light on broadcasting.
By people who love the industry, but also hold it to account.
podfollow.com/beebwatch/view
22.10.2025 13:28 β π 5 π 2 π¬ 0 π 0
The BBC World Service reaches more than 300 million people β but should it be funded from the Defence budget? ποΈ
Mary Hockaday, fmr BBC World Service Controller discusses its future & whatβs at stake for global journalism, soft power, & editorial independence.
π§ Listen here: podfollow.com/beebwatch
09.10.2025 09:48 β π 3 π 1 π¬ 0 π 1
ποΈ New episode out now!
My guest is Stewart Purvis β former Editor-in-Chief & Chief Exec of ITN, and once a regulator at Ofcom.
We discuss:
Lisa Nandy vs GB News
Impartiality in broadcasting
ITV at 70
Stewartβs career highs (and a βnipple-gateβ low!)
π§ Listen here: podfollow.com/beebwatch
02.10.2025 08:42 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 2
Is the BBCβs recent βsong and danceβ over its international audio changes really worth it? Former BBC Trustee Mark Damazer shares his doubts about the payoff.
π§ Hear more in our latest episode: podfollow.com/beebwatch
#BBC #podcast #media
25.09.2025 13:59 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
New Beeb Watch episode is out! π§
Robin Aitken β former BBC journalist & Telegraph contributor β joins us to discuss his chapter in The BBC: After the Licence Fee?
We cover impartiality, Brexit, religion & audience trust.
Listen here π podfollow.com/beebwatch
17.09.2025 09:09 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
π¨New report finds UK media often misleads on immigration & the ECHR.
From the bogus βchicken nuggetsβ deportation story to judges labelled βenemies of the people,β coverage creates a toxic βdata fog.β
We ask co-author Prof. @alicedonald.bsky.social can PSBs cut through the pollution? ποΈ
11.09.2025 08:41 β π 2 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0
π¨ New Beeb Watch series
π Prof. John Wyver @illuminations.bsky.social discusses the campaign to protect access to the BBC Written Archive Centre & wider challenges facing the arts at the BBC.
π§ watch clip & listen now in full:
π podfollow.com/beebwatch
#Archives #PublicServiceBroadcasting #BBC
04.09.2025 09:19 β π 4 π 2 π¬ 0 π 2
Prof Cathy Johnson's report on "Behind the Screen" with @ibtrust.bsky.social @campaignforthearts.org @universityofleeds.bsky.social & Sandford St. Martin exposes how algorithms are destroying genre diversity, civic content, & the social purpose of broadcasting.
π§ Listen podfollow.com/beebwatch
24.07.2025 08:36 β π 3 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
ποΈ BBC Governance, Not Government Interference.
Richard Ayre joins us to unpack:
π₯ Gaza documentary scandal
π¨βπ³ MasterChef presenter exits
π Culture Secretary & Ofcom pressure
π΅οΈββοΈ Editorial oversight challenges
π The BBCβs annual report
π§ podfollow.com/beebwatch
#BBC #BeebWatch #PublicBroadcasting
17.07.2025 09:31 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
ποΈ New episode: Marcus Ryder, CEO of the Film and TV Charity, on the Greg Wallace controversy & the culture crisis in UK film & TV.
β‘οΈ 50+ new complaints
β‘οΈ 41% say theyβve faced bullying or harassment
β‘οΈ Why so few feel safe to speak up
β‘οΈ How the industry can change
Listen π podfollow.com/beebwatch
10.07.2025 10:59 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
π @miqdaad.bsky.social joins us to unpack βBBC on Gaza-Israel: one story, double standardsβ β a major report by @muslimcouncil.bsky.social
"We want to engage positively and constructively. I'm not here to just attack the BBC."
π§ Full episode: podfollow.com/beebwatch
19.06.2025 15:34 β π 2 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0
π³π±βIf you think thatβs fair broadcasting, Iβm a Dutchman.β
ποΈ Iain Dale on his latest book on Thatcher, the BBC, and public service broadcastingβplus the time he refused to go on Newsnight
π§ podfollow.com/beebwatch
#IainDale #Thatcher #BBC #Newsnight #Broadcasting #Podcast
10.06.2025 16:42 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
βThe BBCβs coverage actually is quite timidβ¦ thereβs a kind of βDonβt go there.ββ
Veteran journalist John Ware critiques the BBCβs reporting on Gaza and Israel β & calls for more original journalism.
π Full podcast: podfollow.com/beebwatch
ποΈ #BBC #Gaza #Journalism #JohnWare
06.06.2025 08:09 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
βSomewhere near a third of homes are purely internet TV households.β
On the latest Beeb Watch podcast, Jonathan Thompson (CEO of Everyone TV) discusses Freely, Smart TVs, & the future of free UK TV.
π§ Listen here: podfollow.com/beebwatch
#Freely #EveryoneTV #Streaming #UKMedia #Broadcasting
29.05.2025 07:41 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
βThe bigger risk actually is if the current governance system is maintained."
@tommills.bsky.social Dr Tom Mills lays out what mutualising the BBC could really meanβand why it might protect journalism like Jeremy Bowenβs.
π§ Beeb Watch podcast: podfollow.com/beebwatch
#BBC #MediaReform
23.05.2025 09:03 β π 2 π 2 π¬ 0 π 1
Patrick Spence on why the kind of drama that won a BAFTA might now be impossible to make:
βIf I was offered Mr. Bates vs The Post Office nowβ¦ I would not take it on.β
Whatβs going wrong in British TV & what needs to change.
π§ podfollow.com/beebwatch
#BritishDrama #PublicServiceMedia
16.05.2025 08:49 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
ποΈ Rozina Breen, CEO, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism & ex BBC News exec on #truthtellers, Sir Harry Evans Investigative Journalism summit, the Trump-era chill on journalism, the role of local news, & why fact-based reporting still matters. Listen: podfollow.com/beebwatch
#JournalismMatters
09.05.2025 10:12 β π 1 π 1 π¬ 0 π 0
ποΈJonathan Dimbleby on Beeb Watch podcast:
- Why "We ended up mutually agreeing that I wouldn't speak at this occasion.β
- Myths of WWII
- Populism & democracy's fragility
- The future of public service broadcasting
- The decline of the long-form interview
π§ Listen: podfollow.com/beebwatch
24.04.2025 10:59 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0
ποΈMy first post here! Follow me for updates on Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch podcast β a passionate but critical friend of public service broadcasting. ποΈ 8 series, 100+ episodes. This week: Nick Kent & his powerful BBC Two docπ¬ The "Road to Auschwitz" & the importance of BBC π§ podfollow.com/beebwatch
14.04.2025 10:50 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 1
Professor of journalism & political communication at Cardiff University & night time π for my kids
Professor, School of Law and Social Sciences, Middlesex University, London
Public sociologist & socialist. Interested in elites, knowledge & communication. Author of 'The BBC: Myth of a Public Service'.
BBC Political and News Correspondent. Particular interests in crime, justice, policing. TV, Radio and Web. tom.symonds@bbc.co.uk
Comedian, Cricket Statistician, Podcaster. Host of The Bugle podcast and BBC Radio 4's The News Quiz. Reigning Taskmaster champion. Test Match Special statsmonger. Stand-up tour: andyzaltzman.co.uk
BBC News Analysis Editor, The Media Show, 'The Art of Explanation', 'Communicating...' podcast, squash enthusiast, occasional DJ. Agent:
annie@miradormanagement.co.uk
I am UK/Home Affairs Correspondent for BBC News. Police, prisons, law, crime and terrorism. Before that Moscow Correspondent so still post about Russia/Ukraine.
Emeritus Prof, Co-Chair @TBIJ, previously Director BBC News. Also photography and LFC
Welcome! Find us weekdays 10:30pm on BBC Two, BBC News, iPlayer with Victoria Derbyshire, Paddy O'Connell & Matt Chorley - plus Katie Razzall, Nicholas Watt and Faisal Islam
In-depth, independent reporting to better understand the world, now on Bluesky. News tips? Share them here: http://nyti.ms/2FVHq9v
The best of FT journalism, including breaking news and analysis.
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NEW BOOK: 'Dead Cat on Your Table'
"Witty, alarming and persuasive, this is the handbook that progressives need. Martin Rowsonβs cartoons are a treat, too." - Lindsay Mackie, Prospect Magazine
Founder, Good Egg Productions | Creator of Roger Bolton's Beeb Watch Podcast (@BeebRoger) | views my own
official Bluesky account (check usernameπ)
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