Why BBC Local decision is bad news for Wales
There is an argument occasionally proffered by historians, journalists and statesmen that Wales only became a nation when the BBC decided to call it one.
When transmitters were erected across Britain at the dawn of the TV revolution, the island was divided into English regions and Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish nations. The move, it's argued, promoted patriotism within these culturally distinctive nations and paved the way for the devolved governments which now operate within their capitals.
But while the Celts revelled in achieving a recognised identity, England's regions enjoyed a more localised service which directly reflected its smaller audience's tastes and interests. In Wales though, only the national picture prevailed. This meant that whether one watched BBC or the brand-new ITV, the offering was consistently diverse enough to be relevant to everyone and no-one.
To this day, the distinctly different demands of Welsh communities are not consistently addressed by any of our national broadcasters. BBC Wales does its best - occasional west Wales opt-outs on BBC Radio Cymru, and live match commentary for either Cardiff City, Swansea City or Wrexham depending on your locality. But if audiences want community news they must opt for an unreliable local radio bulletin or the decidedly shaky online offerings of their local papers.
This is why the BBC Trust's decision to call a halt to the corporation's ambitious local websites plan is such a blow for Wales. The sites would have given a reliable, trustworthy source of local news and information that is currently unavailable. They would also offer a portal for people to access services within their area that would otherwise have gone undiscovered, and encouraged people to engage with their community via the BBC's reputation for honesty and good journalism.
Crucially, the sites would have been available in Welsh as well as English. This vital element would have given life into the communities that are struggling to keep their native Welsh speakers from leaving for bigger towns or English cities. Community news in Welsh has traditionally fallen on the now ailing network of Welsh language community newspapers like Y Dinesydd in Cardiff, and Yr Hogwr in Bridgend. They are staffed by an aging group of dedicated volunteers, but the readership among younger generations is almost negligible.
These community papers would benefit from taking the BBC's axed plans on board and developing their own websites, and hopefully the cash won by Golwg (the Welsh language weekly magazine) to launch an online Welsh news service will be enough to nourish local Welsh language news rather than another version of BBC Newyddion Ar-Lein.
Wales's communities would have benefited immeasurably from the BBC's local video websites. Hopefully the commercial sector will now react and produce more reliable, interesting local content without the threat of bigger and better offerings from the Beeb.
When transmitters were erected across Britain at the dawn of the TV revolution, the island was divided into English regions and Scottish, Welsh and Northern Irish nations. The move, it's argued, promoted patriotism within these culturally distinctive nations and paved the way for the devolved governments which now operate within their capitals.
But while the Celts revelled in achieving a recognised identity, England's regions enjoyed a more localised service which directly reflected its smaller audience's tastes and interests. In Wales though, only the national picture prevailed. This meant that whether one watched BBC or the brand-new ITV, the offering was consistently diverse enough to be relevant to everyone and no-one.
To this day, the distinctly different demands of Welsh communities are not consistently addressed by any of our national broadcasters. BBC Wales does its best - occasional west Wales opt-outs on BBC Radio Cymru, and live match commentary for either Cardiff City, Swansea City or Wrexham depending on your locality. But if audiences want community news they must opt for an unreliable local radio bulletin or the decidedly shaky online offerings of their local papers.
This is why the BBC Trust's decision to call a halt to the corporation's ambitious local websites plan is such a blow for Wales. The sites would have given a reliable, trustworthy source of local news and information that is currently unavailable. They would also offer a portal for people to access services within their area that would otherwise have gone undiscovered, and encouraged people to engage with their community via the BBC's reputation for honesty and good journalism.
Crucially, the sites would have been available in Welsh as well as English. This vital element would have given life into the communities that are struggling to keep their native Welsh speakers from leaving for bigger towns or English cities. Community news in Welsh has traditionally fallen on the now ailing network of Welsh language community newspapers like Y Dinesydd in Cardiff, and Yr Hogwr in Bridgend. They are staffed by an aging group of dedicated volunteers, but the readership among younger generations is almost negligible.
These community papers would benefit from taking the BBC's axed plans on board and developing their own websites, and hopefully the cash won by Golwg (the Welsh language weekly magazine) to launch an online Welsh news service will be enough to nourish local Welsh language news rather than another version of BBC Newyddion Ar-Lein.
Wales's communities would have benefited immeasurably from the BBC's local video websites. Hopefully the commercial sector will now react and produce more reliable, interesting local content without the threat of bigger and better offerings from the Beeb.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comments:
Excellent post Huw; I hadn't considered the Welsh language aspect (I can order a pint of beer in Cymric but my eight-year-old son knows a sight more than I do). The same must apply to the Gaelic-speaking areas of Scotland and, less plausibly perhaps, Cornwall, the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland.
The news that the BBC Trust had wimped out of this plan seemed sadly predictable; the newspaper publishers won't do the job properly themselves but they sure don't want anyone else to do it for them, presumably because if the BBC did do it people would realise what a piss-poor service they had been fobbed off with before. Doubtless Paul Dacre's cosy chats with Gordon Brown ensured that the right arms got twisted.
Perhaps our tame Trustee could be asked about this in due course.
Post a Comment