“Wounded and limping, doubting its own future, American journalism seems to be losing a quality that carried it through a century and a half of trials: its swagger.”

This is a superb article from Politico’s Jack Shafer. And in many ways echoes the situation on this side of the Atlantic.

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Good morning. It’s Monday 13th May 2024.

Monday: UN World Wildlife Crime Report released 

Tuesday: Michelle O’Neill appears before the UK’s pandemic inquiry.

Cannes Film Festival opens

Wednesday: Annual foodbank figures from Trussell Trust 

Thursday:  Christie’s auctions Monet’s Moulin De Limetz painting

Friday: Boeing Starliner manned launch scheduled

Saturday: Stop the War / Palestine Solidarity Campaign demonstrations

Sunday: Final day of the men’s Premier League season

It’s changeover day at Year Of The Expert. 

Part 2: The Where is now done and dusted, with all chapters now consolidated in one longer-form podcast. Next week, a cheeky Sir John Curtice bonus, before we move to Part 3. 

LISTEN HERE

“I feel like I hear a diversity of opinions on immigration in BBC output. What I don’t feel I hear is enough stress-testing of those opinions. I don’t just want to hear that someone thinks something. I want to explore the reasons why they think that, and …how their perception of the issue marries with what’s actually happening.” 

A BBC journalist giving evidence to an independent review of BBC migration coverage – which finds “no consistent bias” in any direction.

BBC WRITE-UP

DAILY MAIL WRITE-UP

THE REPORT

Israel shuts down local Al Jazeera offices in “dark day for the media”.

READ MORE 

UK News websites:

The Independent’s audience was up 8% month-on-month in March, leading to it jumping from sixth to fourth place in Press Gazette’s latest monthly ranking of the biggest news websites in the UK.

And finally at last week’s Arias (sorry for the cliche, but they really are the Oscars of the Radio Industry)…

Best Speech Presenter:

Marianna Spring – BBC Radio 4

Best single programme:

File on 4 – Jon Holmes, Generation Shame – BBC Radio 4

Footnotes:

After an 86 year run Readers Digest UK is no more.

Vanessa Feltz gets a Saturday afternoon slot on LBC. Lewis Goodall gets Sunday morning. 

The Pope was shot four times at close range as he blessed the crowds in St Peter’s Square in Rome on this day in 1981.

And the popular weather slot finally returns on account of higher temperatures. 17 degrees in Bournemouth and 19 degrees in London today.  

And Leo for one is delighted… 

Be part of the MMB. Thoughts on this week’s content, or interviews you’ve seen, heard, or (best of all) done. We’re @insideedgemedia or just reply to this email. 

Have a brilliant week.

All at Inside Edge

A BBC Question Time audience member originally from Congo cites conflict between Rwanda and DRC and asks the government minister if the UK would send refugees from DRC to… Rwanda. A confused Chris Philp replies: “Well, Rwanda is a different country from Congo, isn’t it?”

The image of the audience’s reaction should be hung in the National Gallery…

Good morning. It’s Monday 29th April 2024.

Monday: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez expected to make public statement on his political future

Tuesday: The King’s return to public duties 

Tony nominations announced

Wednesday: BBC faces employment tribunal over age and sex discrimination

Thursday: Local and Mayoral elections 

Results from Apple and Shell

Friday: Paul Nowak addresses NAHT conference

Sentencing for Just Stop Oil protestor who scaled M25 gantry

Saturday: Ofsted chief inspector addresses NAHT conference

Star Wars Day (“May the 4th be with you…”)

Sunday: Panama general elections

5 golden rules on how to find the contact details of a journalist. And crucially – what time should you get in touch with them? 

“I’m no mathematician, but if 34% of print journalists want 5am – 9am, and 34% of journalists want 9am – 12pm…well send it at 9am.”

It’s the final chapter of Part 2 of Year Of The Expert.

LISTEN HERE

“Imagine a general election campaign where a political party can interview itself on TV every day. It’s coming soon courtesy of Ofcom.”

Professor Stuart Purvis – a former ITN News boss and Ofcom official, writes a brilliant blogpost capturing perfectly the mess the regulator has found itself in over how it decides to police (or not) output on GB News.

READ MORE

Roger Mosey, former BBC News boss agrees:

“I’ve supported fostering the diversity of views. But they (Ofcom) have got this one wrong. They’re creating a gulf between ‘News’ and ‘Current Affairs’ which doesn’t exist, and they rely too much on audience perceptions. There has to be an editorial grip on what is impartial and fair.”

Daisy Goodwin in The Times is sick of middle-aged mansplaining on podcasts, (and it’s hard not to disagree).



READ MORE (firewall)

Andrew Neil gave evidence to a Lords Select Committee last week and packed his evidence with more liftable quotes than you can shake a stick at.

On how government should help journalists:

“Stay the hell out of it. You’re not on our side, we’re not on your side. We’re different. Relations between journalists – all media – and government should always be bad. And never, on any account, allowed to get better.”

On how GB News might have differed had he not left two weeks after it launched:

“The production values would have been much higher. It would not have looked as if it were coming from the nuclear bunker of the president of North Korea.”

And finally…this from James Ball of Demos and The Media Society:

Footnotes:

Fierce rioting broke out in Los Angeles following the acquittal of four white police officers accused of beating black motorist Rodney King on this day in 1992.

Weather temperatures remain suspended at this time due to stubbornly low numbers.

And just time for the obligatory dog photo.

Be part of the MMB. Thoughts on this week’s content, or interviews you’ve seen, heard, or (best of all) done. We’re @insideedgemedia or just reply to this email. 

Have a brilliant week.

All at Inside Edge

“Why Year Of The Expert? I now have a new answer. It’s contained in the first 28 pages of Ian Dunt’s book, ‘How Westminster Works…and Why it Doesn’t.’ It recounts Chris Grayling’s 2013 decision to privatise probation in this country, and the devastating effects of a failure – a total refusal – to listen to experts who actually know what they are talking about. The impact of an idiot uninformed political decision makes you genuinely angry – mainly at Grayling, but also the system. Above all though, it is a sobering story of what happens when experts are ignored.” 

Bubble Bursting – part 2, chapter 5 of Year Of The Expert is now live, and you can also catch up on the whole series so far.

LISTEN HERE

Good morning. It’s Monday 22nd April 2024.

Monday: The Rwanda bill will once again return to the House of Commons for a fourth round of ping-pong

The case of the UK’s worst child serial killer in history, Lucy Letby, is heard at the Court of Appeal

Tuesday: MPs debate Football Governance Bill in the House of Commons

Wednesday:  Angela Rayner stands in for her boss at Deputy PMQS

US Supreme Court hears Idaho abortion law challenge

Thursday: Channel 4 hosts local elections debate

Friday: Paris 2024 Olympic flame handover ceremony

Saturday: White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner

Sunday: Israeli report on provisional measures due in South Africa’s ICJ case over Gaza genocide accusations

“To be chosen fills me with joy. It is a real privilege to present this extraordinary programme.”

BBC World Service presenter Nuala McGovern is the new presenter of Woman’s Hour.

Source: BBC Press Office

“The disinformation hurricane surrounding the Bondi stabbing marks the end of Twitter as a breaking news destination.”

Van Badham in The Guardian



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“Listen here, this is a rehearsal, not a fxxxing tea party!“

One of the founders of ITN and a a legendary studio director Diana Edward-Jones has died. Colleagues have been universal in their praise of her creativity, unflappability and use of highly colourful language in the gallery…

READ MORE

Footnotes:

Last week I talked about sports journalist Henry Winter being made redundant by The Times. Jonathan Lieu in The Guardian writes an odd epitaph

Haiti’s ruler, Francois ‘Papa Doc’ Duvalier, died after 14 years in power on this day in 1971.

Weather temperatures are suspended until summer arrives. (It’s too depressing to type “highs of 12 degrees” for the 453rd week in a row.

And just time for the obligatory dog photo. This is my niece’s dog Holly.

Be part of the MMB. Thoughts on this week’s content, or interviews you’ve seen, heard, or (best of all) done. We’re @insideedgemedia or just reply to this email. 

Have a brilliant week.

All at Inside Edge

“This should take you no more than about 5 minutes to write. Which is good…because usually nothing will happen. But occasionally the journalist will bite.”

How do you email a journalist to pitch your research? Listen to our line-by-line guide.

It’s Part 2, Chapter 4 of Year Of The Expert, and you can also catch up on the whole series so far.

LISTEN HERE

Good morning. It’s Monday 15th April 2024.

Monday: Parliament returns from recess for the start of a crucial period for Rishi Sunak as the final battle to pass the Rwanda bill plays out

Trump set to become the first former (or sitting) US president to face a trial on criminal charges as jury selection gets underway in his hush-money case

Tuesday:  Liz Truss publishes her book, 10 Years to Save the West. (Form an orderly queue please…)

Deadline for US assurances in Julian Assange extradition case

Wednesday: Inflation data for March

US Senate committee hearing on Boeing safety culture

Thursday: Meeting of the UN Security Council

Friday: Parliamentary elections get underway in India

Taylor Swift releases new album

Saturday: Bitcoin fourth halving expected

Sunday: London Marathon

“It’s one dark day of many for British journalism, but I’m immensely proud of everything we achieved together.”

Ramzy Alwakeel

Non-profit newsroom Open Democracy is cutting about a fifth of its staff, including its head of news, news editor, and political correspondent.

It’s evidence of just how tough it is for the sector. (We really do need this news source at the moment.)

READ MORE

At the other end of the news spectrum, The Sun halved its losses last year with lower phone-hacking costs. The Times grew revenue but saw a drop in profits due to higher costs. New figures filed with Companies House also reveal TalkTV made losses of £53.7m in its first full year on air.

Source: Press Gazette

“One of the many mysteries of the combined BBC News Channel is why it has such a low story count given its worldwide resources. The half hour from 7pm only had two full stories, and nothing from the UK. It feels too thin too often.”

Roger Mosey, former Head of BBC Television News

Excellent story from Associated Press about what X/Twitter has become: a platform full of “right wing pseudonymous influencers who act as alternative information sources.”

READ MORE

Footnotes:

Brilliant sports writer Henry Winter has been made redundant by The Times. Terrible decision.

Word of the week is definitely pseudonymous.

The United States bombed Tripoli in retaliation for Libyan terrorist attacks on American targets in 1986.

Highs today of 9 degrees in Carlisle and 9 in Glasgow.

Just time for the obligatory dog photo.

Be part of the MMB. Thoughts on this week’s content, or interviews you’ve seen, heard, or (best of all) done. We’re @insideedgemedia or just reply to this email. 

Have a brilliant week.

All at Inside Edge