Dan Hannan is Nott impressed with the BBC

I recently took part in a Radio Five Live discussion about the BBC.  I was the critic of the BBC and someone from The Guardian (naturally) was its defender.  Sounds balanced?  Not a bit of it.  Throughout the whole interview I was intensely questioned and interrupted while The Guardian's representative was given softball questions.  I make no great complaint.  I've got used to such treatment but the biased interviewer/ anchor is one of the most prominent ways in which bias is manifested.  In addition to presenter bias there are choice of topics which receive attention, promotion of unrepresentative voices of opinion, unnecessary polarisation and simplification of arguments and general mischaracterisations.

Dan Hannan records his own latest experience of BBC bias on his Telegraph blog.  Up against two Europhiles - who are introduced  as impartial experts, Dan Hannan is introduced as a fierce critic of the EU.  Dan then reports how the BBC presenter "listened to the Euro-enthusiasts in respectful silence, but took exception to almost everything I said."  John Nott-style Dan walked out of the interview - read the rest of Dan's account here.

As we mark 50 years of the EU it is important to remember how the BBC has systematically been sympathetic to the EU.  The Wilson Report of 2005 concluded that the BBC was systematically Europhile.  The report found that negative stories about the EU - including budgetary fraud - were significantly underplayed by the BBC.  Robin Aitken, in Can We Trust The BBC?, notes that "during the European elections of 1999, in more than 250 hours of main national news coverage by the BBC, not a single Labour Eurosceptic had appeared on air."  Five years of BBC monitoring by Minotaur found an overall 2-to-1 bias in favour of Europhile speakers and "scant analysis" of Eurosceptic alternatives to the current direction of the EU.

Meanwhile a TNS poll of all 27 member state populations (17,443 people in all) by Open Europe finds widespread Euroscepticism:

"Across the EU as a whole, 28% think the EU should have more powers than it has now and that more decisions should be taken at the European level.  23% think the EU should keep the powers it has now, but should not be given any more.  41% think the EU should have less powers than it has now and that more decisions should be taken at a national or local level.  In the UK the equivalent figures were 11%, 27%, and 58% - a clear majority for taking powers back."

Full poll details here.

Comments

[George Hinton]

Nothing new about BBC bias,and Dan Hannan should be used to the situation he finds himself in.
Clearly the BBC needs to be dealt with, but, no government will sieze the bull by the horns. For NuLab it's win win, they receive soft treatment and little criticism and can get on with ruining the country and running their scams. Should the Tories take action it will be spun to show how an impartial organisation is to be turned into a right wing propaganda bureau.
Sack all the lefties and make impartiality a contract must, to be monitored at all times.

[CCHQ Spy]

Fascinating poll from open Europe. What a gap between the EU elites and their peoples!

[Christina]

I think it's time that the BBC tax was challenged and an alternative found. There should be the right for someone to watch TV channels other than the BBC without the threat of prison. We have the technology for this. We should replace the compulsary license fee with optional subscription as the whole country goes digital.

[DrFoxNews]

Is this article news, commentary or opinion?

Time for full privatisation of the BBC - sell it to Rupert Murdoch (who has his fingers in almost every other broadcasting pie anyway - Sky, Freeview, ITV, Five etc...) and let him conduct a purge of all its poisonous socialist weasels and transform it into a British version of FoxNews, so that we can have some real impartial, unbiased and in-touch programming!

[Bishop Hill]

It's worth remembering that the BBC through its BBC Worldwide subsidiary has some huge loans from the EU, via the EBRD - a bank it set up to promote European integration. Until the loan documents are made public I will believe that BBC bias in favour of the EU is a requirement of the loans.

[Andrew]

"It's worth remembering that the BBC through its BBC Worldwide subsidiary has some huge loans from the EU, via the EBRD....."

The EBRD isn't part of the EU. It's also nothing to do with EU integration - its spending is directed towards the old Warsaw Pact countries, and very few of said countries are even EU members.

Given that EBRD loans are pretty tiny compared to the BBC's budget, it seems somewhat unlikely a loan to a commercial subsidiary would yield much influence. On top of that, I can't see why they'd loan BBCW anything at all, that's just not their purpose or method at all.

[Steve]

You must ask yourself why will Cameron not promise a referendum? He can campaign to stay in and reform if he wants but he is deliberately ignoring the wishes of the public. Why should anyone vote for someone who starts out with the attitude of denying reality, ignoring the majority view and allowing this farce to continue?

[BBC]

Has become a standing joke really, its beyond salvation. Sell it off and let broadcast rubbish to those who want to listen to its bias.

[Bishop Hill]

Andrew

Beg pardon, I should have checked my acronyms before posting. It's the EIB, not the EBRD.

[Andrew]

OK, that makes more sense - the EIB is more of a "national champion" subsidy bunger than a real bank.

Still, a 25 million loan to a subsidiary of an organisation with a budget of £4 billion is basically irrelevant. BBCW alone makes something like £200 million a year profit, so it's hardly in drastic need of finance.

[Curly]

Aargh!

Every time that I see the words is and nott running together recently, they bring dreadful connotations and more nightmare images of Gordon Brown.

Can you please rewrite your headline?

[Philip]

The BBC comes nowhere near its need for impartiality. Its reporters and producers seem to push a lib/left agenda on various issues, such as the EU. Someone posted on Ian Dale's blog about the Michael Crick becoming political editor of Newsnight (that thread on Ian Dale's blog is worth reading - 1206 am Thursday), that the BBC must be gearing up for a massive anti-Cameron campaign once Mr Brown becomes PM.

So what to do with the BBC?

Get rid of the iniquitous BBC Tax.

Privatise the BBC, and sell it to Fox.

Or let 18DS take it over!!

[Denis Cooper]

George Hinton @ 11:22 - "make impartiality a contract must"

For the BBC as a whole the requirement for impartiality is already written into
its Charter, but the problem is how to enforce that contractual obligation.

[Colin Wilfred Holland]

The basic factor is not only is the BBC not conforming to its mandate but Ofcom is not doing its duty in policing it.
The BBC needs a cleanout especially on radio 4.
What is needed is enough people to complain to Ofcom so that they cannot ignore the tide of complaint.
The new agenda is anti Iran where they are not asking the right questions to question their stance.
For instance why did the mother ship not fully monitor its own men on the kidnap issue, and why did the Royal Navy not learn from the identical 2004 kidnap - these are all questions that come to mind with intelligent people - does this mean that the BBC regard its audience as illiterate oafs?
Regards,

[Mark Fulford]

"Ofcom is not doing its duty in policing it"

Ofcom is probably where our efforts would be better directed. They are probably more fearful of criticism and more able to influence the BBC anyway.

[ukfirst]

I heard Raymond Snoddy this morning on BBC New 24 doing his regular slot of viewers' complaints about the BBC. I think Snoddy really would like to see the BBC doing its job properly.

However, as usual, good issues were raised by articulate viewers (eg today about the infantile presentation of 'breaking news' on News 24), then BBC producers are brought on to respond, but they will not give an inch in response to well-argued criticism. This complacent elite at the BBC needs the boot.