Informed 07


2018 by a 6 per cent pay increase and 3 per cent the following year. Constructive talks about NUJ recognition at Al Araby, where about 400 people (not all journalists) are thought to work, are in progress. Michelle Stanistreet, NUJ general


secretary, is optimistic about opportunities in this burgeoning sector: “It is London’s talent pool that is drawing broadcasters here. We have shown what a difference NUJ organisation can make to those staffing these stations, so I am confident that, in time, we will have a string of recognition agreements in this area. “We will also be ensuring that NUJ members don’t find themselves pressured to let standards slip.” Her concerns are well founded –


broadcasters controlled by repressive regimes can be unedifying. A string of Ofcom judgements shows how standards can slip. Press TV’s licence was revoked in 2012


aſter it broadcast an interview with a Chanel 4 journalist conducted “under duress”. RT, the Russian-government- controlled channel, has been the subject of several regulatory investigations for lack of impartiality and several stations have been sanctioned for broadcasting jihadi content. Troubling as these are, this regulatory


atention is assurance that there is some check on standards and, for those who have experienced the decline of much of the UK’s traditional media, it is comforting to think that at least one part of our industry is enjoying a boom. l A report on news consumption in the UK by Ofcom shows TV is the main source among UK adults, while use of social media has increased, with nearly half of all adults using it for news. Young people aged 16-24 are more


likely to use the internet than TV (83 per cent/51per cent), as are those from minority ethnic backgrounds (82 per cent/65 per cent). BBC One is most used for news among


all adults (58 per cent), followed by ITV (40 per cent) and Facebook (35 per cent).


BBC takes flak over pensioner TV licences


Furious pensioners call on licence fee payers to boycott BBC… Elderly face visits from TV licence fee police… 101-year-old begs government not to take away free TV licence. These three headlines, the first from The Daily Mail, the second from The Telegraph and the third from the Daily Mirror reveal the horror show the BBC finds itself starring in after deciding it would deprive up to 3.7m pensioners aged over 75 of their free TV licence, with only those on pension credit getting the benefit. But there was a big difference in the


reports. While saying that Elsie Allcock’s viewing of her favourite soaps was her “only bit of comfort”, the Mirror pinned the blame on the government. The Mail’s account pointed to “the BBC’s whopping salaries which last year was £148m for presenters alone, with Match of the Day host, Gary Lineker, topping the bill with a pay packet of £1.8m”. The Telegraph’s


New NUJ BBC team Paul Siegert, former BBC secondee for the past nine years, is to become the union’s national broadcasting officer. Te NEC endorsed his appointment and thanked him for his work, particularly during the latest protracted negotiations over the new terms and conditions deal at the corporation. Michelle Stanistreet was also thanked for taking on broadcasting responsibilities during


story will have pensioners hiding behind the sofa every time the doorbell rings. The NUJ has made clear, including in a media select committee consultation on the issue, that this government should have honoured its manifesto commitment to maintain the benefit, and further governments must return the responsibility for funding the free licences to where it belongs – the Department for Work and Pensions. The next licence-fee deal must be made in public or decided by an independent body. During a quizzing by the Department


for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport select committee, the BBC said collecting the benefit would result in a one-off fee of £38,000 to set up and £13,000 per annum to run it. The corporation said the overall cost would be £250m a year. Director general, Tony Hall, also admitted that the deal he struck with the government had not turned out to be as favourable as he first thought.


the illness of Sue Harris, who has now retired. More BBC secondees were elected earlier this month: Moira Rawllings for the regions and nations and a London- based job share of Adam Bowen and Lesley Taylor.


Global not local Local radio station owner, Global, which runs Smooth, Heart and Capital, has used rule changes agreed by the broadcasting regulator, Ofcom, to close more than 10 stations, cut


local breakfast and drivetime shows and hundreds of jobs, a meeting in Parliament was told. Kevin Brennan, shadow arts and culture minister, said he had asked Ofcom to review its decision on changing the terms which constitute “localness” for commercial radio. Local radio in Wales and Scotland would be hit hard, he added, and he would put pressure on Bauer, the second of the big two in local radio, not to follow suit.


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